Acceptable Risk
by 10th Muse
Summary: Emily Prentiss, now with INTERPOL asked Hotch and Reid for help, realized her feelings for Hotch never died. Reid, agreed to help Emily to get his mind off from the death of Maeve Donovan, met another woman. Their mission in England soon became more dangerous when they discovered Al Qaeda was in the midst of it all! Can the FBI help INTERPOL? Can Hotch reveal his feeling for Emily?
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! I've been working on this story for a while. Let me know what you think? This is a Hotch/ Emily and Reid /OC pairing – do note, I've never done a Reid story before as he's such a complex character and I wanted to make him right. If I had done him incorrectly, I do apologize.**

**This takes place post Zugzwang.**

**.Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from TV series Criminal Minds!**

**.**

**Acceptable Risk** -

.Chapter 1.

"Reid, it's just a three day trip to London. Not one month." Hotch eyed the especially oversized dark gray luggage.

Spencer Reid shook his head and replied, "Actually, the contents are not my clothes. Some of the stuff in there are mine but the rest are … well Garcia's presents for Emily… and from JJ, and Derek, and Rossi. Apparently, they want to save postage."

Hotch shook his head, "Custom might have something to say about that but I'm not arguing over this." He glanced at his wristwatch. "Are you ready?" He made to pick up his luggage, a three piece medium sized luggages.

Reid nodded his head as he picked up his own two pieces as well as the huge behemoth of a luggage. As expected he was having difficulty with it.

"Here, let me." Hotch shifted his bags and began to heaved the bigger luggage and almost threw his back.

"Son of bit…!" he muttered, "what the heck is in there?" he glared at the younger man as he hefted the luggage again; it seemed to weighed as much as 100 lbs! "Never mind. If I know Garcia, and we know Garcia, it's better not to know what's in there. It just had better not be a dead body …" Hotch continued to mutter as he lifted the heavy bag.

Reid, relieved that he didn't have to lift it, followed Hotch out of his apartment building. He was intrigued as to what the team had packed in there.

As expected, they ran into a slight problem at the airport. The slight problem was the fact of the problematic luggage and the weight factor. Luckily, Rossi knew they had to pay an extra fee for the weight; a lot of overweight fee so he helped cover the charges.

"Is Emily expecting us?"Reid asked.

"Yes." Hotch replied, his heart skipped slightly as he looked forward to seeing her again.

As the two Federal agents settled into their seats, Hotch reflected on the situation leading to their present trip to London.

It happened a week ago. The BAU team had wrapped up their latest case. Hotch felt that Reid was still feeling unhinged; he was not over the death of Maeve Donovan. It was understandable. Reid had formed a unique relationship with her even though he had only met her once; when she died. But the bond they had formed during their correspondence was much closer than physical, much more transient for Reid. Her senseless death had shaken him to the core and it was going to be a very long time before he recovered from it. Hotch hoped he was able to do so, like he did from the death of Haley. It was a slow process but he did. He hoped Reid would let him help him heal, if not maybe someone else. Hence, Emily Prentiss, if anyone who had experienced trauma, it would be her. He was banking on her help.

At the same time, he was helping her as well.

INTERPOL in Syria had intercepted an entire warehouse full of crates. Ten of the crates contained at least 200 notebooks. They were in short-hand. The warehouse was registered in Arabic, therefore Al Qaeda was suspected. They sent it to London to inspect the contents of the warehouse and realized that five crates contained computer software. What they discovered in the software were five sleeper cells based in London. The locations were in the notebooks.

No one in INTERPOL knew how to interpret short hand and the only ones that knew how were the secretaries and they did not have top-secret clearances.

Looking into all the INTERPOL agents' files, they were not so lucky either. It was only during agency meeting when Emily came across the information of the notebooks that she remembered Spencer Reid's specialty. She approached her bosses and within hours, the agency quickly managed to get the Director of the FBI's cooperation into this situation, directed Emily to coordinate Reid's expedited arrival and assistance. The INTERPOL was anxious to locate the sleeper cells and eliminate them.

In short, once Reid arrived in London, he had less than two days to interpret the notebooks. Emily took a deep breath when she returned to her office with stack of sealed files, and sat before her laptop.

As the time zone indicated, it was almost 7pm her time she saw that it was only nearly 3pm in Virginia. Great, she hoped Hotch was in his office at this time and not in the field in some godforsaken state working on whatever dark and diabolical case. She called up his number on her cell phone; some things had not change, their phone numbers being one of them. Emily was glad of that one constant. She smiled when his face came up on her screen as the call was going through. International calls were still taking some time to go through, especially in the INTERPOL building as it worked through the scrambling codes. She knew their conversations would be recorded.

"Hotchner," he answered in his usual baritone voice. Emily smiled again; she missed his voice.

"Hey, it's Emily." She greeted him.

"Emily! This is a surprise." He paused for a moment before he continued again. "Is everything okay?" There was concern in his voice; was she having one of her bad days? It had been a while since they last talked. He felt bad and guilty for not calling her, checking up on her as he had promised himself to do so but the case with the Replicator had taken precedence over everything. He mentally smacked his forehead for neglecting his friend.

"I'm fine Hotch. I was just wondering if you have a few minutes, actually several. I need to discuss something and I need to 'borrow' Reid for a few days over here in London. The Bureau Director has given the green light on this." She bit her lower lip as she began to pick on her nails.

"Borrow? I…I guess an explanation is in order. What's going on, Emily?"

"First of all, I can't talk on the cell. It's not secure. We need to talk on a landline and I need you and Reid in the conference room." She said.

Hotch thought for a moment as he looked out into the bull pen; luckily for her, the team was on stand-down for the week as they worked on the Replicator case as well as catching up on other cases they had closed previously.

He finally said, "We'll talk in the conference room in five minutes, is that okay?"

Emily replied, "Er, you'll need about half an hour. Here's the number to the phone." As she read off a set of numbers, Hotch realized that she wanted to talk in a much more secure telephone and location; what the heck is going on? But he didn't ask her, he figured she would tell him in due time.

Emily nodded, "Thanks Hotch, I owe you one."

"Don't worry about it. What are friends for and…" he hesitated for a moment as an idea came to him suddenly and he continued, "in fact, you might be doing me a favor."

Puzzled, Emily asked, "Favor? I don't understand…"

He grinned suddenly and then realized she couldn't see him, "I'll explain later. So, I'll see you in half."

"Oh! Yes, Half. Bye."

"Bye."

Hotch stared at his cell for a moment, his smile remained as Emily's face disappeared from the screen.

He picked up his office phone and began to make a few phone calls, fifteen minutes later, with confirmation from the Director himself, he stood up and left his office.

Hotch stood up from his desk and left his office. Coming down, he approached Reid and said, "Got a moment?"

The young doctor, in the middle of his files, looked up and nodded, "Yeah, what's up Hotch?"

"I need you with me in the Secure Briefing Room." Hotch began to walk out of the BAU section.

Reid frowned as he stood up, closing his files and followed his Unit Chief. Morgan looked up from his work and gave Reid an arched look.

Reid tried not to look too nervous; he knew Hotch was still not pleased with him at his performance on the last case. He was trying hard to get over Maeve but it was too recent for him. Everything involving Maeve was too recent and no one in the team understood him and how he felt for her.

He wished they would leave him alone. He would handle his pain in his own way. He was a doctor after all.

Catching up with Hotch, Reid found him by the elevators. He noticed the button Hotch had pressed was going down. Hotch had mentioned the SBR but it was two floor up not down.

"Hotch? Where are we going?" He asked.

Hotch explained to him that Emily had requested a secure phone conference. The set of numbers she gave him were not for regular phones but for the STE phone which stood for Secure Terminal Equipment. It was encrypted to prevent anyone from intercepting secure conversation. A crypto card was required to be inserted into the phone for the encryption to work; otherwise, the phone was use as regular phone. The Middle Eastern countries had yet to break the codes in the encryption. As much as he could, Hotch explained to him what Emily had requested, which really was quite vague.

"Why did she request a secure land line conference? Why only the two of us?" He asked again.

Hotch looked at him and shook his head, "Reid, I don't know. We'll find out when we talk to her in a bit."

Reid nodded as they rode the elevator down to the basement. As they exited, Hotch led them to an encrypted door where he entered some numbers into lock before turning the handle and entered.

"I feel as if I'm with James Bond all of a sudden. Garcia would love this secretive stuff." Reid said in a hushed tone as they walked along a long corridor.

Hotch stared at the younger man and shook his head, "By the way, you cannot tell anyone about this location, not even Garcia." He said, deadpanned.

Reid, believing the secrecies eagerly, nodded his head, his eyes were huge as saucers as he took in the places.

Hotch chuckled and shook his head, "I'm pulling your leg, Reid. It's okay, she knows about the Dungeon, as she likes to call it. She's been here plenty of times."

Before Reid could answer him, they arrived at another set of door with encrypted locks on it. Again, Hotch entered a set of codes and soon the door was unlocked. The two men passed through and entered into a smaller room that consisted of a large desk with a telephone and two chairs.

As they sat down, Hotch put the phone on speaker mode and began to dial the set of numbers Emily had given him. A minute later, after a series of dial up tones and beeps, the phone rang and Emily's voice came on.

"Prentiss."

"Emily, It's Hotch and Reid."

"Hey Hotch, Reid."

"Hi, Emily, how are you?"

"I'm doing well, Reid."

Without delay, and anxious to know what was going on and why the sense of secrecy, Hotch asked her. "Is it safe to talk now?"

She chuckled before her tone became serious, "Seven days ago, INTERPOL intercepted a cargo coming into Syria. They found a lot of wooden crates inside and to make a long story short which I'll brief you more on this when you get here. The main point is, this has Al Qaeda written all over it."

Hotch and Reid looked at each other with trepidation; a trip to London?

As if reading their minds, "Yes, I hope your passports are current."

They grinned as Hotch shook his head at her perception; how well she knew them.

Emily continued, "There are 5 sleeper cells here in London that's about to become active. INTERPOL wants eliminated. There are 200 notebooks written in shorthand, thankfully in English. We suspect whoever wrote it is British subject or has English affiliation. This is where Reid will be coming in to help. INTERPOL needs these notebooks interpreted ASAP."

The line on the other side was quiet for a moment before Reid spoke.

"Emily, how long do we have?"

"You have minimum of two days, Reid."

Emily paused for a moment before she spoke again.

"Spence, tell me now if you can help us. The thing is when you get here, you'll be sequestered into a room with the notebooks. But you'll have a guard who will be keeping you safe."

Hotch looked at Reid, "What do you think, Reid? Can you help them?"

Reid thought for a moment, and then he nodded. "Sure Emily, I can help you. Two days? No problem."

Reid actually smiled at the prospect of interpreting the notebooks. A new challenge.

"Emily," Hotch asked. "What kind of risk are we talking about?"

There was a slight pause before she replied, "We're not sure. Whoever misplaced this cargo will be looking for it."

Hotch nodded, "Sounds like they'll do whatever means necessary to recovery it. It's not going to be pretty."

"Hotch, I need your profiling expertise to go over the rest of the contents. Also as soon as Reid interpreted the notebooks, we hope it will direct us to names and locations of these sleepers. There is a stack of what looked like manifestoes that I hope you'll go over as well."

Hotch was perked; manifestoes were usually written as declaration of the author's intentions and wants. His anger at the atrocities over the mistreatments of his people usually in the name of religions.

Emily continued, "It's in Arabic. I'm interpreting them and as soon as I'm done with them, I'd like for you to go through them with your mind."

Hotch nodded, "It's no problem." Then he had to ask, "Why are you asking just the two of us, why not the entire team?"

Emily shook her head, not realizing they couldn't see her through the phone, "The less people the better. Sorry Hotch. I had to choose only one more person besides Reid. I mean if you can't make it, pick another agent." She hoped he would not decline the help.

"No, that's not what I mean. Two of us are fine." He said. He turned to Reid, "Is your passport current?"

Reid nodded; all FBI agents were required to keep their paperwork current and up-to-date.

Hotch spoke again, "Is tomorrow soon enough?"

Emily couldn't help but grinned, "That would be perfect. I'll get my secretary coordinate the flight info to yours. Hotch?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you very much."

"No problem, Emily."

"See you guys later."

"Bye."

"Bye, Emily!" Reid interjected quickly. He was looking forward to seeing his friend again.

When Hotch pressed the button to end the conversation, he heard a set of beeps before the dial tone set in, and then the line was dead.

As they made their way back to the BAU office, the two talked a bit, "Hotch, how much should I pack; two days? Three or a week?"

Hotch thought for a moment and then answered, "Emily mentioned you'll be sequestered for at least two days, maybe three. How about a week, just to be on the safe side."

Reid nodded. Hotch noticed there was a slight spring on his step. He smiled slightly as he was glad that the young doctor was beginning to 'thaw' out of his darkness. He was glad Emily had called.

Then he stopped smiling. The Replicator. Seriously. He can't go. He couldn't abandon his team when they were in the middle of this crucial case. He needed to talk to Rossi. And Strauss.

When they arrived at the elevator, Hotch turned to Reid, "Reid, finished you files, go home and pack. I'll let you know as soon as I have the flight information and I'll pick you up tomorrow."

Reid nodded.

Hotch continued, "I need to talk to Strauss and Rossi."

The young man nodded.

…

End of Chapter 1


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow! Okay! Thank you everyone for putting this on their alert/fav! And your reviews! Hope I don't disappoint!**

**.**

**Acceptable Risk -**

**.Chapter 2.**

Back in London:

Emily breathed a sigh of relief.

Hotch was coming. Granted, he would be here to help, nonetheless, he would be here. She would be seeing him again. Her heart skipped a beat. She still carried a torch for him.

There, she admitted it.

It was a blow to her ego when she saw him with her. Beth Clemmons.

She had always thought she had a chance with him once he was over Haley.

Yeah, it hurt when she watched him hugged her. It was then she decided that as long as she was working under him, there would be no chance for her, for them. He dashed her hopes when he went out with Beth. Nice, sweet Beth.

Oh, she was not holding a grudge against this Beth; at least she made him happy. She had seen him happy. He had begun to smile again at the office again. And the team was happy for him, Emily included. But damn it! It hurt like hell that it was not her that was making him smile!

And she couldn't go on seeing him mooning over Beth everyday at the BAU. And when he was on the phone with her, it hurt to see that smile was for Beth. The knife dug deeper into her chest.

Yup, she had to make a decision.

And bless Clyde's heart and his offer for an out. No question about it. It was now or the opportunity would slipped by and it would be too late.

And then came JJ's wedding.

Boy that was the humdinger of humdingers!

It was pure torture to dance with Hotch. Okay, sweet but torture. To be in his arms but that was it: Bittersweet.

The electricity she felt within his arms the entire time! She was glad and then again, regretful, when the dance was over; part of her had wanted it to be over so she could be put as much distance from the two of them, the other part didn't want to leave his side. She wanted the music, the dance to go on forever.

That evening, when she was back in her apartment alone, she could still feel his touch.

She remembered he whispered her name quietly during the dance. He didn't think she heard him but she did. Her skin goosed immediately when she heard it. Her heart palpitated but she didn't respond, she didn't know if he wanted her to respond. She felt it was one of those moments that he was feeling sentimental and whispered her name.

But then again, Hotch did not get sentimental. So that didn't make any sense.

So, why did he whisper her name unless he had some feelings for her which was impossible. He was with Beth. He came with Beth. It was as if he was being unfaithful to her.

Ha! That was totally dumb. They were not married, how could that be construed as being unfaithful?

Emily shook her head as she mumbled to herself, "So ridiculous."

"Excuse me, ma'am?" A young man with a shocking head full of red hair stood by the door of her office queried.

Emily, startled out of her reverie, looked up to see her secretary staring back at her strangely, "What? Oh! What do you need, Mr. Weaver?"

Looking slightly confused, he shrugged as he held out a sheet of paper, "Um, here's the flight confirmation you needed for the two Yanks agents coming down here tomorrow, ma'am."

Emily nodded and told him to fax the information to the BAU in Quantico, VA. Then she told him to finish for the night.

He nodded and bade her a good night but as he left he looked at her strangely before he went through the connecting door leading to his office mumbling, "These bloody Yanks are bunch of crazy lots, if ya ask me. Never figure 'em out. I'd soon work with me own kind but it's a job."

"I can hear you, Mr. Weaver." Emily said out loud from her office as she was looking at the manifesto, interpreting the foreign language.

Her secretary smiled as he ran through the paper through the fax machine while he packed up his paperwork. "You need to go out, Agent Prentiss. Me old lady says it's not healthy for a single woman to be cooped up in an office every night working."

Emily smiled and said, "Your wife thinks everyone should be married before the age of 20, Mr. Weaver. I'm very happy with my single life. Did you tell her that?"

He sighed as he slung his satchel over his head and left shoulder and made to leave but he walked to the door of their office and peeked into hers, "I've told her every night, Agent Prentiss but she insisted on introducing you to her cousins, my cousins, cousins' cousins, and every known relations of hers. Believe me, ma'am, stay away from me ol' lady when she invites you to supper."

Emily laughed, "I'll keep that in mind, Mr. Weaver. Good night, give my regards to your Mrs."

He shook his head, "Will do, Agent Prentiss. Good night." He waved at her before turning to leave.

Twenty minutes later, her cell phone buzzed; without looking she knew it was Hotch.

"Hey, Hotch." She answered.

"Hey," he greeted back. "That was fast." He was reading the flight information. "It's going to be a long flight. And with Reid." His tone was one of dread.

Emily laughed, "Pack plenty of music. And a really thick book."

He chuckled through the line. "Somehow I don't think that is going to work. He'll still talk. Then again, he might not."

Frowning, she asked, "Hotch, what's going on with Reid? What happen? Is this the return favor you're talking about?"

"Yes, I'm hoping it might work." For the next half an hour, Hotch told her about Maeve.

"As you can see, I'm hoping that if he's away from here, it might take his mind off her for the moment and hopefully, he'll come around and talk it out while he's there." He finished with his theory.

Emily was quiet for a moment before she spoke, "let's hope he'll open up."

"I'll see you tomorrow?" He asked her softly.

Emily smiled, "Yeah Hotch, tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it."

"Me too. Goodnight, Emily."

"Goodnight, Hotch."

As she ended the phone call she bit her lips and thought, _I'm such a schmuck_.

She tried to tell herself to move on. That was the whole purpose of her transfer to London. Separate herself completely from him.

In fact, she went on a couple of dates since her arrival here. Of course they didn't pan out.

The first one, she found out the guy was all about himself and he was still living with his mother, for heaven's sake, and he was in his 40s!

The second was a divorcé who was actually looking for a step-mother for his four kids. Yeah, in your dreams, buster!

The third fella was fellow law enforcement. Actually he was an agent working for MI-5. His working hours was worst than hers. He stood her up three times too many due to being called up for cases.

She decided that it was not worth the wait. He was very good looking though. He looked very much like Hotch; dark haired, brooding. The only difference was he had piercing blue eyes compared to Hotch's warm brown ones. It might have worked but they couldn't coordinate their time to get together; pity.

It was then she decided that enough was enough. She was here to work, not get into the dating pool. There was time for it. She needed to get her head into work. Apparently, the unit here needed work; it was a mess. The agents were incompetent. It took a lot of work but she finally managed to put together a group of men and women she felt they could work well together and get the job done in accordance to INTERPOL mission statement.

That was how she met Lucas North, the MI-5 agent. She had worked a few cases with said agency and found them quite difficult to get along at first but she managed to thaw them.

She could have like him a lot if not for another man's image in her mind.

Damn Hotch! Why couldn't I shake him off! Maybe I needed a priest to exorcist him out of me!

Slamming the file shut, she knew she was not able to concentrate on it at all. Hotch had occupied her mind completely. She put the files in a briefcase and called it a night.

…

When she arrived home, she was instantly greeted by her cat, Sergio and another, an orange orphan she found in an alley one evening on her way home whom she named Thelonious. Emily bent down and began patting both adorable felines as they clamored for affections, rubbing themselves against her pants..

"Is that you, Ms Emily?" A loud female voice shouted from within.

"Yes, Mrs. Johnson. It's me." Emily replied as she stood up and made her way to the kitchen.

Mrs. Johnson was 60 years old; Emily had employed her as housekeeper as well as cook.

The kitchen, along with the house was old. But it was cozy and big. Mrs. Johnson was finishing up on supper.

Emily peeked into the hot pot the elderly woman was stirring, "Mmm…beef stew, this smells delicious. Is it ready?" She was hungry. Lunch was about 7 hours ago.

"Yes, Ms Emily. Just a moment. Let me ladle it into a bowl and put a few slices of bread." She nodded.

Emily smiled, "I'm going to go change. By the way Mrs. Johnson, I'm having two guests staying for a couple of days. They will be arriving tomorrow afternoon."

Mrs. Johnson nodded; she was used to Emily's guests popping up. "I'll have the guests' bedrooms ready."

"Thank you, Mrs. Johnson. You're a gem!" Emily quickly gave her a hug before she dashed out of the kitchen yelling about changing out of her work clothes, her two cats running after her.

Ten minutes later she was back, she had changed into plain dark blue Tee and sweats.

Mrs. Johnson nodded at her before setting Emily's dinner on the dining table.

Since they had moved to the house, Emily preferred to eat in the kitchen when it was only she and the housekeeper.

"Have you eaten?"She asked Mrs. Johnson.

"Nay but I'm heading home, my son and grandson are expecting me for dinner." She said.

Emily nodded, "Then you better go ahead. I'll take care of the dishes." Mrs. Johnson had just become a grandmother, this was her first grandson.

The elderly lady smiled, "Thank you, Ms Emily. Most kind of you." She nodded as she went to the cabinet and put grabbed her belongings and putting on her coat and hat.

"Oh, dessert is in the cooler, if you want some. I'll see you in the morning. Good night."

"Good night, Mrs. Johnson. And thank you for the delicious stew." She said with her mouth still full of food, grinning as she waved her housekeeper off.

Full from dinner, Emily quickly washed the dishes and dried them. After she had put them away, Emily wandered into the living room. It was a big room.

She picked up her briefcase and settled down in the sofa and opening it, she began to read the manifesto.

Grabbing a notebook and pencil, she began to write down the translation.

Interesting. She read through her translation and tried to figure out the meaning and purpose.

Hotch would definitely be interested in this.

Al Qaeda had been active all this time. The elimination of their leader, Osama bin Laden, had made no impact to the group. In fact it had strengthened them. Their need for revenge for their dead leader was uppermost in their mind as well as punishment to the nonbelievers or the infidels. But where were the targets? That was what Emily needed to know. INTERPOL, NSA, FBI, heck every acronyms in the government agencies known would be interested in these five cells and their whereabouts. She hoped they were not too late, she hoped they were able to get to them before they went active.

As she yawned for the fifth time or was it the sixth, no matter, she looked at the clock across from her on the wall and saw that it had gone past midnight; bedtime.

She looked about her and smiled; her two cats were cuddled together on the other sofa fast asleep, they had kept her company as they had done every night.

Sergio, her steadfast cat, came all the way from Virginia with Emily. She recalled his trip to the vet and the shots he had to endure for his overseas trip. The pitiful caterwauling he made almost broke her heart but she couldn't bear to part with him. Then when they arrived at their first apartment, he hid in a cabinet for days. Emily thought he was going to die of fright and hunger but eventually, drawn by his favorite raw fish, he finally came out of hiding and ate. He even let her pat him and even purred for her, albeit begrudgingly.

It took him a few days later to settle down, to get used to the new smell.

But of course, not long after, came the intrusion in a shape of a small fur ball; Thelonious.

Emily was on her way home one evening when she decided to stop by a pub for a beer with a new agent. Down an alleyway, they heard a loud commotion; dogs barking and cats hissing.

Always curious, Emily decided to investigate.

"Agent Prentiss, I wouldn't go in there, not with vicious dogs there. They could mistake you for another dog and take up a fight with ya." The agent urged her.

Emily shook her head as she stubbornly rushed in, grabbing a trash lid and began banging on it trying to frighten the dogs.

It worked as the dogs ran away fast.

Throwing down the lid, she moved forward and looked on to where the dogs had gathered and saw that they were trying to attack a kitten!

It was bloodied and one of its ears was torn up.

As Emily bent down to pick it up, the kitten hissed at her in defense.

By this time, her companion had joined her, "Gads Emily! That was foolish to try to take on those dogs! They could have attacked you! Damn foolish!"

Emily turned to him, "Quiet Tomas, I got rid of them, didn't I. But look, this kitten is injured."

He peeked over her shoulder and shook his head, "It's just a wee one. It's not gonna make it. Best shoot and end its misery; you'll be doing him a favor."

Emily shot him an angry look, "Don't be an idiot. It's frightened and hurt. I'll take him to the vet and get him cleaned up. It's a cute little fellow." She smiled at the kitten.

It hissed at her again as she tried to pick him up.

Tomas laughed, "Ho, ho, looks like little fella don't want anything to do with ya, a little ungrateful, if ya want my opinion."

Emily removed her jacket and placed it over the hissing kitten before she picked him up, "Tomas, if I want your opinion, which so far is a bunch of shit, I'll ask but in the meantime, keep it to yourself." She walked away from him.

Tomas laughed at her as he followed her.

Then she stopped suddenly and turned around, he almost bumped into her and the squirming bundle, "You are taking us to the vet."

Tomas, his eyes widened, mouth open and shut a few times, before he finally said, "But…but Agent Prentiss…Emily! The vet is all the way across town! Me ol' lady is expectin' me home soon!"

Emily smiled, "Serves you right for being inhumane. Come on, less talk. I'll explain to Josie that you're being humanitarian. And when we're done, she'll be putty in your hands."

His face brightened, "You really think so, Agent Prentiss? I mean she'll be wonderful to me?"

Emily nodded. "Woman loves it when a man shows some compassion for animals. Trust me, I'm a woman."

He looked at her and nodded, trustingly. After all, she was his new boss. And he liked her a lot; she was cool.

At first, when he found out that their supervisor was a female, a young female, the men in the unit was skeptical. They were old school. They figured she had worked her way up lying down on the bed or a couch.

But when they met her, Emily was not whom they thought she was. Pretty soon, she won a lot of respect from the unit, even from the older men. They knew she was a worthy leader when they saw it, and she was one. She was not afraid of being in the field and she had seen battle. In short, she was one of the guys.

Even the men's wives liked her. They did not see her as a threat to their men. She was not that type of women. She had been to their homes, and ate with them, listened to their woes, and sympathized with the wives.

She treated their children as if they were her nieces and nephews, lots of nieces and nephews.

Christmas was a riotous occasion. She loved the family atmosphere they fostered in the unit. And they made her part of them.

"A kitten." Tomas shook his head as he drove.

Emily grinned as she peeked at the bundled. She had been stroking it through her jacket trying to calm it down; it was trembling the entire time.

"Come on, big guy. What is wrong with rescuing a kitten? Doing a good deed, it'll come back at you tenfold."

He snorted. "Tenfold." He mumbled. "If you ask me, I'd rather have a hundred fold in pounds."

Emily chuckled.

On the way to the vet, they talked about his interests and why he had decided to join the INTERPOL. A friendship was struck between the two not long and soon, Emily usually asked him to partner with her on occasionally cases when she had to go on the field.

At the vet, the kitten was cleaned up and except for the bitten off left ear and couple of bite marks, courtesies of the vicious dogs, he was in perfect health.

Emily and Tomas were about to leave when the vet stopped them. He wanted to know if they were coming back to pick him up the next day. Emily, confused, shook her head. She told him to put the kitten up for adoption.

The vet shook his head; he told her that they had plenty of cats and kittens as it was already. And that every day, they had to euthanized cats and kittens that had been in the shelter for more than two weeks. They simply didn't have the resources to feed them.

Emily turned to Tomas who shook his head, "Oh no, Josie is allergic to cats. Severely allergic"

Sighing, Emily's shoulders sagged, "All right. Put him in a carrier. I'll take him home. I hope Sergio likes him."

"Who's Sergio?"Tomas asked.

Emily glared at him, "My boyfriend."

Tomas, eyes widened, "I didn't know you have a boyfriend. I thought you…uh…you…"

Emily squinted at him, "I what?"

Face flushed bright red, he shook his head, "Oh no, nothing…j...just nothing."

Something clicked in her head as she stared at him hard, "Oh no you don't, Tomas Wilkinson! You thought I was a lesbian!" She punched him hard on his shoulder.

He doubled down on the ground of the vet's office.

"Oh my god, that hurts like the devil." He winced hard.

"Serves you right for thinking that!" She glared at him. "Is that what the others at work think so too?"

Tomas, trying to get up, "I don't know about the rest. I'm sorry Emily."

As soon as the vet came back with a carrier, the calmed down kitten tucked inside, the two agents left. Tomas still rubbing his sore arm followed a little slower behind her.

The drive back to Tomas' house was quiet, well almost quiet. He tried to apologize to her but she ignored him.

When they got to the door, Josie came outside. Tomas' wife was short and plump and friendly, and five months' pregnant.

"Well, I was getting worried about you, Tomas!" She tiptoed to peck him on his cheek and began to sneeze a few times.

Frowning, Emily saw that Tomas was telling the truth about her allergies. "Hey Josie, I'm sorry for keeping your husband late, we had a slight situation." Emily quickly gave Josie a quick concise story of the kitten rescue, editing a little bit and giving Tomas most of the credit.

Josie stared at her husband in almost a hero-worship look; they had been married for about two years.

"Oh, Tomas you really helped out that poor little kitty? Oh, my hero!" She hugged him around the waist, smiling.

Tomas closed his eyes as he hugged her back. His late night work shifts, her being confined at home because of her high risk pregnancy state. It had put the young couple in much stress.

She sneezed again.

Emily laughed, "I think Tomas should go in and change before you break out into a huge sneezing fits"

Josie pulled away from her husband and nodded scratching her itchy nose, giggling. "Yes, husband. Go on, get on inside and change."

He nodded and left.

Emily made to leave when Josie stopped her, "Emily, hold on. May I see the kitten?"

Emily hesitated, "I thought you're allergic?"

"I am but I love cats…at a distance. Please?"

Emily smiled and went to the car and brought out the carrier. Josie walked as close as she could before she sneezed again.

"Oh, isn't he a cutie, reminded me of Thelonious my Granny's cat. They had to give him away when I was born. Poor Thelonious. Granny was so upset but she loved me more and made a choice."

Emily didn't know what to say but knew there and then that the name Thelonious should be an apt name for this little spitfire.

"Josie, would you mind if I name this little one Thelonious? I haven't thought of a name yet and I really think Thelonious would be perfect for him if you would permit it?"

Josie teared slightly as she nodded, "Yes, Emily, yes, please. I love it. That would be lovely. Thank you."

"No, thank you. Good night Josie."

Josie nodded as she sniffled. "Good night to you, Emily." She turned to return to her home, smiling widely and sniffling.

End of Chapter 2


	3. Chapter 3

**Acceptable Risk - **

**.Chapter 3.**

It was after 4pm when Hotch and Reid arrived in London. They were glad to be able to stretch their bodies finally.

Going through customs took a while but luckily for them, with their special passes and credentials they were able to go through without any problem.

As they were at the basement claiming their luggage, they saw Emily. The reunion was a happy one. They had not seen each other for over a year. Aside from the occasional phone calls, there was much to be discussed.

The current case was put aside as it was too sensitive to talk in public. The agents held back till they were in a safer environment.

"Wow, Reid, you really need to eat! If you turn sideways you could slip through a one inch opening." Emily teased her friend as she slipped her hand through his elbow.

Reid blushed as he tried to come up with a smart retort but failed to do so, so he clammed up and began to look about him; he had never been to London before; he had never traveled outside the country before till now.

Looking at Hotch, she said, "How was the flight? Any problem?"

Hotch shook his head as he watched for their luggages to come through the carousel. "It was long. But otherwise not unpleasant. Reid slept most of the ways, fortunately for me." He gave her his famous Hotchner dimple.

Finally, he spotted the behemoth. With a sigh, he stepped forward and picked it up.

Emily's eyes widened. "What is in that? A dead body?" They were receiving plenty of curious stares from other people.

Hotch glared at her as he huffed the heavy bag down on the carrier with wheels. "This… thing is actually yours. It came from Garcia, Morgan, JJ, and Rossi."

Emily's eyes lit up, "They didn't actually send it, did they?" She asked.

Reid shrugged, "We don't even know what's in it. So, what is in it, Em?"

Emily shook her head, "You'll find out when we get home."

"I thought we're going straight to your office?" Hotch asked.

"It's after 5pm now. Too late to start anything, most of the agents have gone home. Besides, you guys must be tired from the trip, and want to settle down." Then she faced Hotch and said, "The manifestoes are almost complete and the contents are really interesting. We'll start first thing in the morning."

Hotch nodded, his curiosity was spiked sky high now.

Twenty minutes later, all their luggages claimed and stowed in her SUV, they left the airport.

The drive out took almost an hour. By the time they reached Emily's house, it was near dark.

Hotch was admiring the house when he got out of the car. "Did you buy this house?"

Emily was opening the boot when she shook her head, "Gosh no, I can't afford such a big house. It belongs to my godfather's. I'm actually house-sitting for him; he is on an extended Shakespearian tour."

Hotch glance from the house to Emily, his eyebrow arched, "Shakespeare?"

"He's playing Henry III as well as Richard I. He's gone for almost a year and will be for another two years."

"Godfather? Wait, I thought you lived in an apartment?" Hotch had remembered Morgan and Garcia helping her moved last year.

"You would not believe what happened… termites." She said simply.

"Termites?" Reid frowned and repeated.

Emily nodded, "The guest bedroom in the apartment building collapsed one evening while I was home, Sergio had a fit trying to catch and eat them." She shivered as she recalled the incident.

The two men winced as they tried not to picture the scenario. "Are they going to redo the building or something?" Hotch asked again.

Emily shook her head, "No, the residents were given a good compensation from the insurance, the building was condemned and had to be torn down. We had to find another place to live. Luckily my godfather was able to offer his house to me to house-sit. My stuff is in storage."

Hotch nodded, "Lucky you, nice house."

Emily smile, "You haven't seen anything yet until you've been inside," then she turned to Reid. "You should check the library. I hope you like Shakespeare, he is a fanatic."

Reid smiled, "I have read all his works. Although I don't mind taking a look again." He said eagerly.

She looked at Hotch and smiled. Hotch nodded as he lifted his bags and began to take them into the house.

As soon as they entered within, the smell of roast wafted throughout. Hotch stopped for a moment as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "That smells good. I hope that's what we're having for dinner."

Emily chuckled, "Mrs. Johnson must be putting out all stop. Come on, let me show you your rooms and the kitchen."

The upstairs were all bedrooms and each bedroom has its own bathroom. Downstairs Emily showed them the kitchen as well as the dining room, living room and the library. As Emily had predicted, Reid was instantly drawn to the room, he ran his long fingers to the books neatly arrange in the shelves against the walls. All the books were read at one time or another. A couple of cozy chairs situated across the shelves next to the fireplace, certainly made for comfortable reading. There was a deep rug in front of the fireplace where two cats currently lying fast asleep.

As Emily entered the room, Sergio got up, stretched and sauntered lazily before he rubbed against her in greeting.

"Hello, handsome, I see you've been lazing all day." She bent down to pat her cat. In response, he purred for her.

Hotch was looking around and watched her greet the black cat affectionately and smiled, "I see this is the one and only Sergio."

Emily picked him up for Hotch closer look, "Yup, my perfect guy." She smiled at him. Hotch reach up and rubbed the cat's head. Emily felt Hotch's knuckles grazed slightly against her chin; she held her breath as she stared at him. He returned her stare. It was an intimate moment, and Emily didn't want to break _that_ moment.

Hotch seemed to notice it too as he kept stroking Sergio and through Sergio, he was stroking Emily's smooth skin. It certainly was an erotic movement. If she could purr, she would be doing it right this moment.

Sergio purred deeper, "Hmmm…he likes you." Emily said. She almost told him that she liked him, and that she liked his stroking.

Then the moment was broken when Reid came holding Thelonious, "Who's this, Emily?"

Turning her head to look at Reid, she smiled, "That's Thelonious." She explained to them how the tiny but newest addition came to be adopted by her.

"And two is the max for me. I don't want to turn into the proverbial cat lady." She added.

Hotch was still watching her, "You are too young and beau…well, young to be that cat lady."

Emily gave him a grateful smile while Reid, not getting the full meaning of Hotch's almost slip, was confused, again.

"Do you fellas need some time to freshen up or are you ready for dinner?" Emily asked, her face was slightly flushed.

Hotch replied, "Give me ten? I do need to call Jack and Jessica and let them know I've arrived here and safe."

She nodded. "Okay, you know the way to the kitchen. I'll see you in ten."

…

Later, after a delicious dinner of pot roast, potatoes and carrots that melted in your mouth, freshly baked loaf bread, peach cobbler and vanilla ice cream, and for Hotch a pint of Stout, for Reid, a bottle of Riesling. Emily had her usual beer to go with her beer.

Dinner was a hearty meal and with such excellent companions, it was very much enjoyable.

Mrs. Johnson was praised again for her cooking skills. She left them when dinner was over and dishes were cleaned.

When the three adjourned to the living room, they enjoyed a light port, courtesy of her godfather's bar. As soon as they sat down, they began to talk business.

Hotch began, "Emily, can we talk safely here?" He looked about the room; it was large and it was made of bricks and old wood pillars and arches. Hotch ever conscience of wire tapping and such, he was not taking any chances of the house being tapped.

The cats had come sauntering and settled on the humans' laps. Thelonious seemed to have taken a liking to Reid as he took up residence on his lap and promptly fell asleep there.

Sergio was lying on Emily's lap as she was running her hand absently on his fur while he purred more; Hotch was sitting next to her on the sofa.

Emily nodded, "Yes, I can't imagine a safer place here." She said as she took another sip of her drink.

"Tell me about the manifesto, how much have you translated. And what is this trip you're talking about?"

The next couple of hours they talked about her discovery. Hotch had many questions.

Emily brought her notes out. While the two men read her notes, she logged into her laptop, checking her emails.

Hotch leaned next to her and said quietly, "Can you tell me what this means? 'The sun sets on in the green fields in a small body of water before our time of fast. Soon our victories will be our martyrdom."

Emily read it again, shook her head, "I'm not sure 'The green fields in a small body of water...' It must refer to a geographical location."

Hotch looked at her and nodded, "Yes, that's what I think so too." He brushed lightly against her hand, she watched him, mesmerized by his slow actions.

Suddenly, Reid interrupted their actions, "Hey! I think I figured it out."

Emily jumped slightly out of her seat, Sergio as well, looking about him, trying to see what the commotion was about. Then he decided that the humans moved about too much, so he hopped down and cantered off to the library where it was warmer, cozier and a whole lot quieter.

"What is it?" Hotch asked.

"It's in Afghanistan."

"Afghanistan!" They both said at the same time, looking at each other. "Don't tell me the trip you're talking about it's there?"

She nodded.

Hotch shook his head, "You're not going."

Emily stood up, setting her laptop on the coffee table. "What do you mean?" Her hands on both sides of her hips.

He stood up, towering her, "Afghanistan is no place for a female so you're not going."

She snorted, "Please, we're in the 21st century, Hotch. Stop with the chauvinism. Besides, who's going to translate Pashto and Dari?"

Hotch turned to look at her slowly, "What?"

"You know, the languages spoken in Afghanistan." She grinned.

His shoulders slummed, "Don't tell me, you do."

She shrugged, "a little of both, passable."

Reid was watching the two of them in fascination. It was like a tennis game, back and forth, left to right, right to left. It was actually exciting.

Hotch thought for a moment, "Okay, but you're sure we'll find what we're looking for there? I don't' want this to be a wild goose chase."

Emily smiled, "Don't worry, Hotch it's me you're talking. I don't usually make a mistake. If we could eliminate them it's not going to be easy. It'll involve a lot of negotiations. We will have to find them and flush them out of their cells."

Emily turned to Reid, "Reid?"

For a moment, he stared at her blankly.

"Reid? Hello?"

Reid blinked and he was back to the present, "yeah I'm here. Um what're we talking about?"

Emily frowned as she looked at him and then to Hotch, he shrugged. Hotch had noticed Reid spacing out for that instance.

"Going to Afghanistan, Reid, are you all right?" She asked again,

Reid frowned as he nodded, "Yeah, what's wrong?"

"Um, you spaced out for a moment. Thought you saw a ghost or something."

Reid shook his head as he combed his hair with his hand, "No, not at all, I guess I'm getting jet lag or something."

Emily nodded, "Yeah, you guys must have been up for a while, why don't we call it a night and start again tomorrow. I'll take you guys to my work in the morning. The notebooks are on their way there as we speak."

Hotch stood up, "What do you mean?"

"They were not exactly sure if Reid was able to do it and they did not want to move them till they have confirmation."

Hotch nodded, "That makes sense." Then he tried to cover his yawn but failed as Emily caught him, she smile as he tried to apologized, "jet lag."

"Yeah, so it would seem.

Emily led the men upstairs to their bedrooms and bade them a good night before she turned to hers which was the first door to the right side of the hall way. Hotch was to next to hers while Reid was across from her.

As she changed to her night wear which was her favorite FBI Tee that was worn and washed many times over that it was a faded navy blue and white baggy PJ bottom. It took a while for her to fall asleep as she was well aware of Hotch being in the next room to hers. She tried to tell herself that nothing was going happen. He was not going to come into her room and ravish her. She had stopped reading those trashy romance books a long time ago! The naive virginal heroines rescued by the handsome rippling muscular heroes, carrying her away and they lived happily ever after, well, after a few mishaps and misadventures in betweens…

"_STOP!"_

Emily though she heard someone calling out as her eyes was drooping…

"_NO! DON'T SHOOT HER. PLEASE! TAKE ME INSTEAD. ME FOR HER!"_

…

End of Chapter 3


	4. Chapter 4

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 4

.

Emily's eyes flew opened; she heard Reid's voice begging somebody. Jumping off her bed, she grabbed her Glock from the night stand and moved quickly, thankful the floors were carpeted.

She opened her bedroom door and saw that the hallway lights were on dimmer. She moved to Reid's room and rapped on his door quietly, "Reid?" she whispered.

No sound.

She put her ear on the door and could hear him groaning; he must be dreaming.

"PLEASE DON'T DO IT! MAEVE..." Emily gasped, she felt hopeless for her friend. Reid was having a really bad dream, no doubt reliving his dead girlfriend.

She tried the door knob, it turned. She moved slowly into his room, again she was thankful it was not completely dark as he had left the bathroom light on, the light streaming into room. Emily looked for the bed and saw that Reid had kicked the covers off his body. His lanky locks were all over his face, his hands hanging over the bed. Emily moved to the edge and put her weapon on the night stand and tried to rouse him gently, she didn't want to shock him right away; she knew the dangers of rousing a deep sleeper.

"Reid, it's Emily, wake up." She rubbed his shoulders gently again.

Reid, still deep asleep, turned suddenly, caught her unaware, flung his hand over and hit her hard on her head, smacking her off the bed.

As she was thrown off the bed, Emily hit the back of her head hard against the foot board and fell down.

The sound seemed to snap Reid as he stood up but to him, he thought it was a gunshot.

"YOU!" He made to grab Emily and began to punch her.

"Oof! No! Reid! It's Emily! Stop!" She tried to cover face as Reid continued to rain punches on her.

"You kill her! Why did you kill her! I tried to reason with you. We could work it out. You could spare her. Damn you, Diane! I'm not going to let you get away with it. You kill Maeve!" He kept on hitting Emily as he yelled at her.

"Reid, no! Listen to me, hear my voice, it's Emily! Stop!" She heard her shirt ripped as she felt more blows on her shoulders and chests. Her ears and head were ringing soundly. She didn't know how much longer she could bore.

Then suddenly the punching stopped.

Then she heard Hotch's voice in the room, "Reid! Stop!" He yelled at Reid as he held onto him. Then he slapped the young doctor hard across his face. It sent Reid to the carpeted floor.

Hotch was heaving heavily as he rushed and helped Emily up, "Are you okay?" His hands were running all over her face to check for injury.

Reid shook his head a couple of times before he turned and sat up, "Wha…why…did you hit me, Hotch?" He was rubbing his cheek. Then he noticed his knuckles were red and began rubbing them.

"Emily? What's going on? What happen to your face?" Reid saw the injuries on her and was puzzled

Hotch and Emily looked at one another before turning to Reid, Hotch asked him, "You don't remember anything?"

Reid shook his head, "No…I…What…I…Something happened?"

Hotch shook his head, "I don't' know." Then he looked at Emily.

"Em, what happen?"

She pushed Hotch's hand from her face and sat upright and told them of Reid's nightmare and her subsequent beating until Hotch's rescue.

"Damn it Emily! That was foolish! What if I couldn't hear you?" Hotch was angry.

"I hit you? Oh God, Emily, I'm so sorry." Reid covered his face with his hands.

Emily leaned over and ran her hand over his hair, "Hey Spencer, it's okay. Look, it doesn't hurt, really, you hit like a girl anyways." She tried to lighten his mood." She didn't want to tell him that yeah, it really hurt like a son of a bi… but she didn't want to make it worst for him.

"Spencer, look at me." She tried to console him.

He didn't for a moment and then, she slowly peeled his hands off his face, he didn't put up a fight as he let her.

She continued, "Hey, kiddo. I'm okay. And I want you to listen, I'm glad it's me you did it to and not anyone else. I can't imagine the consequences if it's anyone else. But I want to know. What happen? What trigger it?"

Reid thought for a moment. "When we were downstairs earlier, when you stood up, you mention negotiations and for a moment you look like her…Diane and all the hatred for her came out. I know it's a stupid thing. I should have gotten rid of it. I should have been able to handle the situation. She's dead. She can't come at me again." His voice faded away.

Emily looked down, "Spencer, you are in a room with two people who had been through horrible deaths up close. Hotch losing Haley, I …well, I almost died. It's never closed."

"She died needlessly, Emily." Reid whispered.

Emily nodded, "They all did. But we have to move on. I know it's hard but we have to get on with our lives. So many people depend on us, especially our jobs."

Hotch added on, "Emily is right, I have Jack to move on. When I lost Haley, I didn't want to do anything. Jessica was a load of help. Without her, I probably would have lost Jack too." It was the first time he had admitted something so intimate. Emily and Reid stared at him, grateful that he would trust them to admit something like this to them. They both knew Hotch was a very private person and would never share something so personal with them.

"I know I saw Maeve only once but I knew her for a long time. She was my forever."

Emily nodded, she knew what he meant. True love was forever. True love was a rare find.

She didn't know what to say; she didn't have a loved one died for her. She only almost lost herself and that didn't count.

Ian Doyle's death didn't count for anything, she was glad that piece of dirt had died; he had killed so many. His son was better off without that son of a bitch.

Reid turned to look at Hotch who nodded at him. Reid said softly, "I'm sorry, I just don't know how to tell you how I really feel about her death. How I dealt with it."

Emily stood up gingerly to the bathroom and took a washcloth and wet it with warm water, it was then she saw her reflection on the mirror and almost gasped aloud; her face was covered with red pelted marks, her lips were cut and bleeding and was swollen, there was a cut across her left brow as well that began to bruise. Her neck was red with blotchy that also began to bruise. Her tee shirt was torn half way down, exposing a lot of cleavage, her face reddened with embarrassment as she was not wearing a bra and she knew the guys must have seen a lot of her chests. Well, it was too late to be acting modest. She tried to push the worn material together but they flapped out again on their own. She sighed as she turned, no time for modesty, she repeated to herself; she hoped the guys wouldn't notice; how had that happen?

Shaking her head, she left the bathroom, carrying the warm washcloth and knelt by Reid and wiped his face with it tenderly.

Reid smiled shyly at her as he nodded his thanks.

"I'm fine now, I think."

Emily smiled back and said, "Yeah, Spencer, I think you'll be. I think you'll be." She kissed him on his cheek. "Get to bed. You need your beauty sleep."

He nodded as he stood up, as well as Hotch who had been quiet the whole time observing them, or more her.

They watched him climbed into his bed like indulgent parents before they bade him good night and closed the door.

Emily walked towards her door before she was about to say good night to Hotch when she noticed he was standing right next to her.

"Let's talk in your room." He said as he ushered her in, and closed the door before she could protest.

She walked into the room and towards the dresser drawers, intending on getting another T-shirt to replace the torn one when Hotch held her hand, stopping her from taking another step.

He pulled her into the bathroom, filled the basin with warm water, found a washcloth. Then turning to her he said, "Sit down."

She nodded as she turned around and hopped on the counter and sat by the sink. He soaked the washcloth into the warm water before pulling rinsing it off and began cleaning her face.

"You know, what you did was really foolish and damn dangerous."

She nodded, as she tried not to flinch as he wiped the blood which had dried off her lips.

"Sorry but he was having a nightmare and sounded really scared." She tried to defend herself.

He sighed as he repeated the process, "Why didn't you come and get me?"

"I didn't want to bother you, Hotch." She reasoned.

"You know I don't mind, Emily."

"I know, besides he is a light weight. I can take him anytime."

"That's not the point…"  
He was going to point out more argument but Emily stopped him.

"Hotch, it doesn't matter. We got him to talk."

He stopped his actions and looked at her. Then he leaned close to her, "Em…"

She responded likewise by leaning towards him but something in the back of her mind stopped her. The image of Beth Clemmons popped up.

Emily leaned back as she put her hand on his shoulders to stop him. "No Hotch."

Confused, he asked, "Why?"

"You know why. Aren't you still with Beth? I don't want to be a complication." She quickly hopped down from her perch and left the bathroom and walked to the door of her room and said, "It's late, Hotch, we have an early start in the morning. I'll see you then." She looked down on her toes.

A minute later, she saw Hotch walked out of her room without a word.

Emily closed her door shut and leaned her head against it; damn fool!

So close, he could have been all she had ever dreamed of.

Just one kiss would have destroyed all she had worked to separate why she was here in London, and he in DC…well, his permanent address.

Damn you, Aaron Hotchner!

She pulled herself away from the door and grabbed a shirt before she climbed into bed.

Sleep was a long time in coming.

In the bedroom next to hers, Hotch was having a hard time falling asleep as well.

Why didn't he tell her that he and Beth was no longer an item?

It was really easy, simple to just say it. But it didn't come out.

Why the hesitation? Why the reluctance?

He had never felt anything but a friendship for Beth Clemmons since they went out. When she kissed him? He didn't feel it.

He tried to give them something. But it just didn't work out. She felt it. That was why she decided to take the job in New York.

He was sad to see her go but to be really honest, he was glad. His heart was not in it. He couldn't help but think about Emily whenever he was with Beth; wondering what she was doing, whom she was with.

When she announced her decision to leave the BAU, it shocked him. He thought she would stay with him for a long time. He thought he had time with her.

What an idiot he was. Yes, he took her for granted.

He was happy for her when he heard where she was heading; to head the INTERPOL in London.

Now they were equal.

BUT they were thousands of miles apart!

She wanted to move on from him.

Of course she wanted to move on from him, you idiot! You had a girlfriend back then! You'd been flaunting your girlfriend in front of her, rubbing it in; you even brought her to JJ's wedding, how do you think she'd felt about it, genius? You hurt her ego! Of course she'd want to put as much distance she could.

Hotch tried to find a comfortable position in the large bed but he was mad at himself as sleep eluded him for quite some time.

It was early hours before the two agents finally fell asleep through exhaustion.

….

End of Chapter 4


	5. Chapter 5

**Acceptable Risk -**

**.Chapter 5.**

Surprisingly, Emily was up by 7am despite falling asleep near dawn. She was ready and was in the kitchen when Reid and Hotch made their appearances together.

Mrs. Johnson was finishing up breakfast which consisted of French Toasts, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and a big pot of coffee. Emily had prepped her the day before that Americans were not used to kippers and herrings in the morning along with their toast.

Emily, her face still bruised, tried to cover as much as she could but she couldn't escape the close scrutiny of her housekeeper who kept staring at her.

Finally, Emily sighed and said, "Okay, out with it, Mrs. Johnson," she shook her head as she nursed her second cup of coffee. She was wearing a maroon turtle neck light sweater. Her neck was bruised too.

Mrs. Johnson shrugged her shoulders and remarked, "Just wondering if you went to battle with those two Yanks of yours last night? But of course, it's none of me business."

Emily shook her head; she didn't bother to explain to her housekeeper the bruises.

When Reid came down, he saw Emily's appearance and tried to apologized to her again, she shook her head and said softly, "I told you last night to forget about it." Out of Mrs. Johnson's earshot.

He reluctantly accepted her reasoning and a cup of hot coffee which he proceeded to doctored it with four heaping spoonful of sugar. Mrs. Johnson's eagle eyes' were wide opened as she observed his ritual. Emily just shook her head in silence.

Hotch was the last person to come down and was quiet as he accepted his cup of black coffee from Mrs. Johnson as she informed them that breakfast would be ready in a minute or so.

Emily was very conscience of his presence but she tried to remain calm on the exterior.

Hotch was inspecting the damages Reid had inflicted on her which did look a lot worse this morning than he previously thought. He looked at her whom she returned his look and he looked at the house keeper in askance, Emily shook her head once. Through their time working together in the BAU, they had come up with a language of their own that only use their eyes to communicate. This instance she told him that the house keeper did not know about the attack on her from Reid.

As soon as the house keeper served their breakfast, she excused herself from the kitchen, presumably heading to the bedrooms; Emily informed the two men that the boxes had arrived at INTERPOL office early this morning.

"And I have two days to get them interpreted it?" Reid reiterated.

Emily nodded. "That's right."

"Mmmm…this is good bacon, Emily." Reid said as he chewed on a piece with gusto, "very thick cut."

Emily smiled, "We get them at a butcher. Sam cuts it for us, as well as steaks, chops, and whatever cuts of meats we wanted."

Hotch spoke up, "You seemed familiar with your butcher; don't tell me, it's another good deed story?" He smiled at her.

Emily smiled back at him, last night's incident erased as she regaled them with the tale of Sam the butcher and how they became well acquainted:

By the time they had finisher with breakfast, the two men were laughing so hard, and tears were leaking out of their eyes.

"And so," she concluded. "Sam, stuck with a whole truck full of live pigs and nowhere to place them, decided to put them in his house. There were pigs everywhere. His wife, Molly, got so pissed at him, started to chase him all over with a cleaver but the neighbors came and started to ask him for cuts. And so, Sam grabbed the first pig he could get a hold of and dragged it to the barn and whack! Pork Chops! Bacon! Ribs! The orders kept coming in. In the end, it saved his farm and house. Until now, no one knew where those pigs come from." Emily said innocently. But Hotch, who knew Emily and could read her easily, smiled. She caught his knowing looks and turned from him blushing.

Reid grinned, "That was a great story, Sam seemed lucky. If he were to be in the US, the FDA could have inspected his barn and fined him for operating without a license…"

"Reid!"Emily yelled at him, "it's a good story, don't ruin it. And besides, Sam has a butcher license or whatever license they have to have." She waved her hand about.

"Oh." Reid replied.

Emily and Hotch looked at each other as they both shook their heads; trust the genius to try to ruin a story and making it too rhetoric.

"Well, are you two done?" Emily asked as she stood up and picked up her briefcase, she was eager to set off.

The two men stood up from the kitchen table. They thanked Mrs. Johnson who had returned to the kitchen, for an excellent breakfast and left the house.

The drive to the INTERPOL building was an hour drive. Reid and Hotch were able to see some scenic sights.

Emily pointed out the necessary tourists' attraction points before they arrived at their destination and went through the security check point.

"Guess that's the perks of being the boss of the INTERPOL branch here, you get in easily." Reid pointed out as he observed the security guards waving them through quickly and easily upon seeing her.

Emily nodded, "That and the sticker on the front bumper of my car that has a barcode that was scanned when I drove through the first set of gate when we entered."

Reid looked embarrassed while Hotch shook his head; for an FBI agent, he still had a lot to learn, it seemed, and a lot of green coming out of him. He hoped that while they were there he would not show how naïve he was. Hotch dreaded the moment. They were meeting INTERPOL agents he knew that had years of experience in them.

Dr. Spencer Reid would be eaten by them in no time. He just hoped they sequestered him quickly.

As it was or wasn't, Hotch wasn't so lucky. It seemed every agent assigned in the INTERPOL wanted to meet with the BAU agents from America. Their reputation preceded them. Of course, having Emily Prentiss as their leader now did not help either.

And of course, the bruises on her face and cut lip didn't escape them at all; they wanted to know who had done it. They wanted to inflict the same damages on whomever. Emily had to soothe them. Hotch was impressed; she had only been in charge for about a year and the whole unit was already loyal and protective of her. Thank goodness Reid was spared.

Emily had to tell them some silly story about warding off a couple of wild dogs and in the process, she ran into some brambles in the woods outside her house.

"Brambles? Huh!" One of her team member scoffed at her skeptically. "Sounds like that crazy story about those termites. I told you…we do not have termites in this country." He shook his head.

Hotch and Reid exchanged baffled looks.

"What do you mean?"

"We do not have termites. Emily told us her apartment was condemned because there was a large colony in the building…what bloody rubbish!" Carter threw his hands up in disbelieve. "I told you she told us a fish story!" He glanced at his colleagues for help.

They nodded, "Oh yeah, certainly! She came back from this secret mission with Mr. Easter…"

"That is enough!" Emily cut him off immediately with a stern look.

Hotch frowned at her.

The men clammed up at once.

"I told you, it was termites…and termites it was. Must be one of those foreign residents that brought those pests into the apartment at one time …that was what the manager said." Emily said firmly, glancing at them with an arched brow.

They nodded with a resigned look. "Whatever you said…boss."

"Well, we have some things to discuss at my office…Hotch, Reid, if you'll follow me." She indicated her office"

The two agents nodded and followed her.

Her secretary was holding fort in the section with a stack of messages and faxes.

"It's about time you arrived, boss! The under Secretary of Foreign Office called twice…twice! Agent Prentiss, he is not in a good mood, and Mr. Easter called as well." He walked quickly after her as she entered her office with Hotch and Reid.

"Mr. Weaver, this is Agent Hotchner and Dr. Reid, the FBI agents from Virginia. Guys, this is my secretary, Mr. Weaver." She introduced them.

The men shook hands.

"How do you do, Agent Hotchner? It is really nice to finally meet you in person; Agent Prentiss speaks a lot about y…Goodness! What the bloody hell happen to your face, Emily? Did you and Sergio have a fight? Or perhaps the feisty Mr. Thelonious? I told you, and I've told you a thousand times, those claws needed to be trimmed. They are the devil if you tell me. The pair of them." He looked at Hotch and Reid and continued, "I volunteered to keep them one weekend and lived to regret it ever since. My dearest wife had not recovered from the ordeal from those two heathens. The furniture! I tell you, Sergio may look sweet as can be but don't let that old devil fool you…black as coal…and Thelonious, don't get me started on that wily youngster…"

"Mr. Weaver!" Emily interrupted him, her face a shade of dark red. "How about some coffee? Now? Please?"

Her secretary bobbed his head several times up and down while grinning as he watched Hotch who was in a shock. "Three cups of coffee, coming right up. Are you sure I can't tempt you in some real English tea? Earl Gray? Oolong? No?"

"Mr. Weaver." Emily said in a warning tone. "Coffee or you'll be doing some training with Collin Walters."

His eyes bulged when she mentioned his name and in a flash he disappeared from her office.

Once he was gone, she grinned, "That worked every time. You've met Collin earlier; big bulging guy with the over sized biceps, three-time heavy weight champ. Mr. Weaver is very intimidated with his size. Collin had threatened him with a hardy work out session. Weaver has been avoiding him like a plague since. Have a seat. We're waiting for one more equipment to get here. So we might as well get a little comfortable here."

Hotch and Reid settled them in her spacious office as they looked about them. "Quite a nice get-up you have here."

Behind her work desk was a credenza filled with picture frames of the BAU team members. That was as personal as she had gotten for office decoration, Hotch thought.

Soon, a much subdued Mr. Weaver came back with a silver tray with coffeepot and three cups and saucers.

"Thank you, Mr. Weaver, I'll serve." Emily stood up and poured coffee for them.

She watched him leave, and added to the two agents, "believe it or not, he's as efficient as any female secretaries. Doesn't gossip…much or have hysterics, happily married. Only flaw is his wife loves to play matchmaker." She sighed as she took a sip.

Hotch grinned, "Take it from me, I'd trade yours anytime. Ms Yardley is worst, she is a confirmed spinster, although don't tell her that, and she loves to gossip, all the other secretaries thinks Jack needs a mother… immediately."

Emily laughed heartily.

Reid frowned and said, "I didn't know you have a secretary, Hotch?"

The two stared at him as if he grew three sets of horns and luckily for him, her phone rang, letting her know that the room was set up for Reid.

The three stood up at the same time. Emily grabbed her briefcase as she led them out of her office and turned to her secretary, "I'll be back in a moment, Mr. Weaver."

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded his head as he watched Hotch and Emily walking together in fascination.

…..

Reaching down to the basement of the INTERPOL building, Emily was directed to the furthest part of the corridor. There she saw a security guard in front of a door; that must be the room where the notebooks were.

As they entered what saw was a small cubicle. A large desk was set up with a chair and electronic equipment on it. Next to it were boxes of packing bubbles. They had carefully packed the black and white nondescript composition notebooks in the bubble wrap to prevent damages.

"What is this?" Reid pointed at the unfamiliar electronic gadget that looked like a laptop but without a keyboard but with a microphone attached to it as well as several flash drives stacked next to it.

"This is a Voice Recognition Short to Long Hand Translator or VRSOLHT or as INTERPOL nicknamed it VSHIT. It interprets short hand. Just talk into the microphone and it will translate into the computer. It is very handy if you couldn't have a secretary with no clearance, as with this case." She explained. "The computer has to recognition your speech pattern first, so turn it on, Reid. Say something so it will recognize your voice. Once it does, it will show you a green light on the bottom right corner. As you translate the notebooks, it will recognize your voice and interpret your words. Save it into the flash drive provided. Once you're done, INTERPOL will do the rest. Any question?"

Reid thought for a moment, then spoke, "bathroom break? Food? Drinks? Am I allowed to stretch out every once in a while?"

Emil nodded. Then she looked behind her where a young woman standing by the wall. "This is Mei-Lin. She is the one who developed the software for V...well, the interpreter. So, if it breaks down for some reason, she can help you, only thing she can help you with is the software, not the interpretation of the notebooks. No one is allowed to see it. If you run into any problem, you need to let me know."

Mei-Lin smile as she nodded at Reid, the door will be locked at all times and I'll be the only with the key. Knock three times and I'll unlock the door for you." She then retreated to her original stance.

Reid nodded his head; he was eager to get it started.

Emily saw his excited eyes and smiled. "Okay, Spencer. Try not to have too much fun with it." She gave him a quick hug as he walked into the room.

Hotch nodded to him, "Good luck Reid, and thanks for volunteering."

Reid just shrugged his shoulders. "I'm glad to help."

Emily closed the door with a soft click and Me-Lin stepping forward to lock the door before nodding to Emily as she assumed her position. Hotch, satisfied with the precautionary procedure nodded at Emily and the two walked away from the now closed off cubicle.

"Don't worry, Hotch," Emily smiled. "He's not completely closed off to the world; he'll be allowed to come out when we break for the day."

Hotch nodded.

As they made their way back up to her office, Hotch turned to her, "About this 'termite story…there seem to be more to it then you're telling me, is it?"

Emily sighed, "It's a long story, Hotch."

"Could it be a code word for Taliban?" He hazarded a guess as he continued to stare at her.

She startled as she returned his look and groaned, "Was it that obvious?"

He shrugged.

"Hotch, it was a classified mission, Clyde and I…"

He held out his hand, "One you almost lost your life!" He said angrily. "So much so, they had to relocate you…"

"Hotch!" She leaned close to him and whispered hurriedly, "Swear to me you'll not tell anyone about it!"

He hesitated for a moment before he nodded reluctantly, "I want to know everything…not one detail missing." He hissed near her ear.

She closed her eyes for a second before nodding, "Deal but I'll tell you all about it tonight." He nodded.

Satisfied, they arrived at her office.

…

End of Chapter 5

A/N: I did not know there are no termites in England! It was pointed out to me by a very nice reviewer! Thanks! That'll teach me for not doing better research! My apologies to my British pals!

P. Muse.


	6. Chapter 6

**Acceptable Risk -**

.Chapter 6.

Emily opened her briefcase and handed Hotch the notes she made the previous evening and said, "Here are the notes. I need to make a few phone calls and I'll help you with the rest of the manifestoes, we still need to identify the first location…actually pinpoint would be a more apt word.

Hotch nodded as he picked up her notes. "Do you want some privacy?"

She shook her head, "Stay. It's not private or anything."

He nodded and began reading.

Emily picking a message and the phone began dialing for the Under Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Nigel Paige.

"Hey Nigel, it's Emily." She greeted with familiarity.

As one sided conversation went, Hotch tried not to listen but contrary to what she said earlier, it was almost a personal conversation that Hotch felt uncomfortable being here reluctantly listening. Then he realized the man on the other end was trying to flirt with her. A jealous flair came within him but he quickly quelled it; she was not his - this trip was a business trip. He was here to help a former colleague - that was all. Stay professional.

_Bull shit, Aaron! You tried to kiss her last evening! You sly bastard! Were it not for her rejection you'd be humping her, too! You ass!_

_Stay focus on the papers_.

"Work, Nigel. Yes! I have guests over from America," Emily said. "No. Friends from the uh…FBI, my former colleagues…Quit being so nosy Nigel Paige…No, we don't have time for a sit down dinner." Hotch looked up at Emily from his notes and she shook her head at him, she was trying hard to shake her caller off. "Nigel, I have to go. I need to go to a meeting…yes, it started five minutes ago. Yes…yes…you bag of gas. I will. Maybe next week? I promise…Bye Nigel." She quickly pressed end on her cell phone, and took a deep breath.

"Nice friend." Hotch remarked.

"Acquaintance, Hotch, acquaintance." She glared at him. "I was obliged to make an appearance at a function when they had to introduce me to the politico scene. There was no avoiding that bag. His function was more like gathering gossips rather than intelligence."

Hotch was smiling wide at her; he knew she hated politics, "You seemed to be doing very well here in London and it suits you, Emily."

Emily gave him a wry look of utter disbelief, "Hotch, I do believe you're making fun of me, at my expense."

He pulled back as he put his hand to his heart as if she had injured his feelings, "Madam, you wound me severely."

She snorted at him, "Don't." She shook her head, "it doesn't suit you."

He chuckled as Emily joined him soon.

"Seriously," he nodded at the papers. "Let's get back to the business at hand. I think the location is here somewhere in London or nearby. I mean INTERPOL intercepted the shipment enroute to either London or somewhere close by… Wish we have a map hereabout." He muttered.

Emily nodded as she looked over her notes again. Then she turned around in her seat and dimmed the lights in her office and pressed a button under her desk; a map of the United Kingdom lit up on the adjacent wall to their right. They both stood up and began scanning about the map, "This is when I wish Reid is still here." Hotch said.

Emily nodded. "Yeah, he'd found our little green field with the small water…" Emily began to mumble the lines as if she was speaking a mantra until she began to laugh.

Hotch looked at her worriedly, "Emily… are you okay? Should I call for your secretary?" He made to leave the office when Emily grabbed him quickly and shook her head.

"No! I figured it out…or I think I did; pool."

Hotch frowned at her, "Pool? What pool? That's not helping." Then he looked at the notes again, then at the map, then thought for a moment and then nodded. "We were thinking too literal. What about Liverpool It's actually nearby and it makes a lot of sense." As they set the notes down and bent their heads together, they talked excitedly for the next hour as they interpret the notes until she received a phone call from Clyde Easter.

"Hello Clyde, how's Kuala Lumpur?"

_Dreadful, darling, the weather is simply playing havoc to my locks_.

Emily giggled, "If you'd trimmed those curls of yours, you'll feel a whole lot human."

_What? And not have those lovely Malay ladies fawning all over me? Then you'll be jealous._ He teased her.

Emily rolled her eyes and shook her head, "Seriously, Clyde. What's going on over there?"

_Well, I'm still stuck here for another week; those bloody fools here can't make up their minds on their agreements on the drug trafficking plans. If you ask me, no negotiations_.

"You tell them, Clyde. I have Hotch here with me on the Al Qaeda situation."

_Oh? Give my best to the old boy, will ya, tell Hotchner I miss him._ Emily did not miss the sarcasm in his tone; the last time they worked together, Hotch had threatened him with bodily injury, of course, he was desperate as Emily was missing because she was in Ian Doyle's hands. Their parting was not a friendly one after that.

"Play nice, Clyde, he's here to help me." She warned. Hotch was watching Emily with an arched look.

_I am being nice, darling. Okay. Where are you off to?_

Emily smiled; nothing could pull over him.

"Liverpool, we suspect a cell exist there. Hotch and I are heading there as soon as we can get a more central address."

_Very well, do be careful. I like you in your current position for a long time._

Emily was touched. "Aw, that's the nicest thing you'd said."

_Yes, yes, Emily, don't go mushy on me and don't be expecting a bloody Christmas card from me either..._

"Are you getting sentimental on me, Clyde?" She teased him further but instead of a reply from him, all she got was a dead tone; he had hung up on her.

With a chuckle, she pressed end on her phone before she set it down on her desk.

Emily put her phone down and went back to their work when she spotted a name on the last file on the manifesto. She picked it up and read the Arabic script and began jotting down the interpretation as fast as she could, trying not to get excited as well. For all she knew, it might be a false trial.

She read it again just to make sure, then log on to her computer and check on the location. Bingo!

"Hotch!" She called to him excitedly and quickly explained that she had found their first lead.

"Saifuddin bin Ahmed. He owns a spice store. His address is…" She read a number and street address."

Hotch smiled widely and said, "Well done, Emily. Now what?"

"We inform INTERPOL, namely my boss and then you and I are going to pay a visit to Mr. bin Ahmed. Once we identify him. INTERPOL will pick him up and take him to a secret location where he will be questioned. INTERPOL SOP."

Hotch nodded, "Standard Operation Procedure. Okay, let's make that phone call."

Emily picked up the phone and proceeded to inform her superiors.

Five minutes later, she and Hotch left her office. Stepping into the INTERPOL bullpen, she looked around for certain agents.

Spotting them, she called out, "Mr. Williams, Mr. Canter. And Mr. Walters, please come with me."

The three men immediately dropped their work and picked up their jackets and followed them out to an unoccupied office.

Emily introduced Hotch to them again, and quickly explained to them their trip and the mission.

When she mentioned Al Qaeda, the men's eyes widened.

"Caw, Ms Emily! Figure with ol' OBL dead and buried at sea, the terrorist threat would be minimal to nonexistent." Mr. Weston Williams, an Irish agent remarked.

Hotch added, "That's where you're wrong, we received terrorist's threats in DC regularly. Our intelligence in the Middle East remained focus and alert at all times."

The men nodded in agreement, they believed what Hotch said.

Emily nodded as well, and smiled gratefully at Hotch.

"So the game plan is this; Hotch and I are going into the store and once we indentify Mr. Ahmed, we'll bring him out, drive him to this adjacent building here," she indicated the building in a picture she showed to the men. "You three will wait for us there. Then we will exchange cars. Target will not be moved from their car until you bring them here into the interrogation cell. Questions?"

The men thought for a moment and then shook their heads; they had done these types of missions many times.

"Let's go." They nodded and left the office.

In the car, Emily drove. Hotch watched his surroundings.

"It's quite a pretty area."

Emily grinned, "Yes it is. I'd take long drive on the weekends to get myself familiarized."

He nodded.

She continued, "And getting lost in the process."

He turned to gaze at her, "Lost?"

She shrugged. "Sometimes, the best way to find the best restaurants is to get lost."

He shook his head but he grinned, "Never figured how you stayed trim…"

She chuckled, "I do run…and exercise, Hotch."

It was his turn to chuckle, "It was a compliment, Prentiss."

"I know. By the way, how's Jack? Did he like his new school?"

The rest of the journey was about Jack.

Halfway towards Liverpool, "Do you know we're being tailed?" Hotch asked her as he looked at the rearview mirror again.

She nodded, "Oh yeah, it's MI-6. Bunch of nosy bastards." She sneered as she shook her head.

"How do you mean?"

"They knew about your arrival at the airport yesterday." She shrugged. "I'm sure they want to know the purpose of your visit."

"And should we give them the courtesy?"

"No."

"No?"

She shook her head. "It's none of their concerns what INTERPOL does and you and Reid are my guests."

"Oh."

"That's right. Really simple."

"I just don't want to create any animosity."

She waved her hand, "No worries, Hotch. We'll let them sweat a bit…or until the situation with the crates become international."

"And will it?"

She shrugged again. "That's why Reid has two days to interpret the books. And we get the puzzles put together before."

Hotch nodded, "Understood."

"Ah, here we are, Liverpool."

"Our first take-down."

She grinned at him, "Just like old times."

He returned her grin, "You're enjoying this too much, Prentiss."

"Am I, Hotch?" She sparkled.

"Like a kid in a candy store."

"Speak for yourself…remember, we're married, are we fighting already?"

He shook his head, "Of course not, my dear, let's go shopping!"

…

End of Chapter 6


	7. Chapter 7

Acceptable Risk – Chapter 7

.

"Okay, we have target in sight." Emily keyed in her mic to her team from her car.

"Roger that, boss."

Hotch smiled, "Kind of strange to hear someone else calling you boss for a change."

She turned to him and grin, "Yeah? It is and it took some getting used to, Hotch."

He smiled at her.

She beamed seeing his smile; he looked ten years younger and those damn dimples deepening…so like a boy!

_Take a deep breath, Prentiss! And grow up…he's taken._ Emily reminded herself.

She turned back to the shop across the street. "Shall we hit it?"

"Huh?" Hotch frowned.

"Um…head over there." She pointed at the shop.

"Oh! Okay…Yeah, sure, let's go." He nodded and stepped out of the car. "Just like we rehearse it."

She nodded as she climbed out of the car and walking around the vehicle, she joined him and together they crossed the busy street and stepped towards the shop of their suspected target.

"The Spice Merchant." They read the store together and smiled. "Ready?" Emily wrapped a scarf over her head and covering her hair before she hooked her hand through Hotch's elbow.

Together they entered the shop, Hotch allowing her in first.

Emily grinned and then smelling the various aromas of spices she closed her eyes and let it infused her mind; it reminded her the time she spent in the Middle East and the times she snuck out and wander in the bazaars where the locals sold their fresh spices.

"Oh my god, this is so great! It's almost like…home!" She gushed as she spun around and placed her face into the jars of spices and inhaled. "Oh, the smell!"

Hotch stood aside and watched her; a different Emily; a very young Emily.

And he liked this Emily…very much.

"Good afternoon, sir, madam?" A clerk approached Hotch smiling pleasantly. "May I help you?"

Hotch, still smiling, pointed at Emily, "My wife is looking for a particular spice."

The clerk nodded and walked to her, "Madam?"

She turned to him and began to speak in Arabic, "Do you have the _Kala Jeera_ spice? It's part of the parsley family and it's for flavoring rice?"

The clerk frowned, "I'm not sure…"He replied in Arabic. "Let me ask my boss, I'll be right back." He bowed at her and left.

Emily continued to bend down at the jars and inhaled at them.

Hotch smiled indulgently at her. "Having fun?"

She straightened up and grinned, "Yes! There are so many fragrant spices…and they remind me of so many memories…!"

"Good afternoon, I understand you are looking for the Kala Jeera?" A bearded man came to stand near them.

Hotch and Emily nodded at him, Emily began in Arabic. "Yes, I am looking for the rare spice, my darling husband is having a grand birthday next week and I want to cook this special rice dish for him on his special day." She looked lovingly at Hotch who returned her smile with a beaming one as he didn't understand one word she had said.

The man brightened at her, "Ah! You have come to right place! What a lucky man he is! Not many people know of this rare spice! I have it, how much do you need?"

"Oh, about one kilogram or maybe two…make it two." She replied.

He nodded several times, "Come, come…I will get them for you but it's not cheap…it'll be about 200 pounds per kilogram."

"Price is not a problem, Mr…?"

"Saifuddin…Saifuddin bin Ahmed." He bowed at them."

Hotch and Emily nodded at him and then she pulled out her credentials as she and Hotch took out their guns, "INTERPOL, please follow me, Mr bin Ahmed. We'll like to ask you a few questions."

Hotch turned to the assistant, "Just move to the front of the store please." The man, his hands up nodded as he complied.

In the meantime, Saifuddin bin Ahmed sagged and nodded as he raised his hands and began to look around him.

"Don't think of escaping, sir. There are INTERPOL agents outside in case you decide to leave suddenly." Emily told him.

Hotch stood near her as they walked him out, "You're enjoying this too much, aren't you?"

She smiled, "Seeing his look is worth it, Hotch. Putting away scumbags like him always brings pleasure."

He grinned.

One of her agents handcuffed the man and placed him in the car.

"We'll meet you back in the –POL, boss." They waved at her and drove off.

She looked at Hotch, "I'm hungry, how about lunch?"

He looked at her, "Sure…what about your suspect, don't you want to be there for interrogation?"

She shook her head, "Nah, the agency can handle themselves. Besides, all that smell of spices is making me hungry for curry or…or Indian food now. What about you?"

Hotch shrugged, "I'm up for anything, you treating?"

She raised her eyebrow, "What? You…whatever happened to gentlemanly gestures?"

He laughed at her, "I'm pulling your leg, Em. Come on, show me a good Indian restaurant and I'll buy." He shook his head as he held his hand out.

She laughed as she took his hand and swinging it walked to the car.

….

In the basement of the INTERPOL.

Reid had so far successfully interpreted 50 books before his eyes began to burn.

"Hey…Dr. Reid, how about a break?" Officer Mei-Lin knocked on the door.

"Hang…Hang on one more moment!" Reid exclaimed as he pressed pause on the machine and closed the books and placed them back in the box as he marked them.

He stood up and stretched up and said, "Okay, I'm ready."

A minute later, the door opened Reid emerged and he walked out and thanked her before she closed and locked the door again as he left the room and used the bathroom.

"Feeling better?" She grinned at him.

He nodded shyly as he looked at the locked door. "I'm not going back in there?"

She shook her head, "Lunch time, Dr. Reid. You've been in there for over five hours." She began to walk out of the warehouse, Reid followed her.

"Where are we going?"

"Do you like Italian?"

He nodded, "Oh yes…spaghetti, pizza, calzone."

She laughed as she shook her head, "No, the Italian fare I'm talking about does not serve the traditional American tourist stuff. They do a really mean pasta and shrimp and scallops." She paused in her step suddenly and turned to him, "You're not allergic to seafood, aren't you?"

He shook his head, "No…I love seafood."

She sighed, "Whew, good, I like seafood too. If you are, we'll have an issue, Dr. Reid…May I call you…?"

"It's Spencer. And yes, you may." He nodded nervously.

She smiled, "Good, Dr. Reid is so formal and so long and takes forever to pronounce. I like Spencer. It goes well on you, Spencer." She smiled as she pronounced his name again.

He frowned at her, "You're welcome?"

She laughed. "I know, I'm a loon. Please don't mind me, Spencer." She waved her hands off. "Agent Prentiss told me many times I talk too much but" she shrugged, "I just can't help it."

They stepped into the elevator that led them up to the first floor of the INTERPOL building.

She then pulled out her cell phone, "Agent Prentiss, I'm taking your Dr. Reid to lunch…the food court, nowhere fancy." She then placed her phone back in her pocket and opening the door out of the building and they left the building.

"I guess phones don't work in the basement?" Reid turned to her.

She shook her head. "Not at all, too much concrete and metal and all those steel thingies around the building, it blocks out the wifi and network."

He nodded and followed her to a nearby Food court that catered to the workers of the INTERPOL.

"So, this pasta, shrimp and scallops, what else is in it?" Reid asked her.

They began to talk as she led him towards the building.

Reid looked at it, 'The Seafood Eatery'.

"Very catchy."

She smiled, "Don't let the simple name fool you, the food is really _rad_."

"Rad?" He frowned.

"Rad…means very good…Don't you people in the States use that term?"

"Er…yeah, I think so."

"You're kind of unusual, Spencer." She walked up to the store and ordered their food.

"Hey, Mei-Lin, do you know we're been followed?" Reid turned around.

She grinned, "You mean you just now notice?" She waved at the two guards, they nodded at them.

"You knew?"

She shrugged, "Agent Prentiss had us followed, she doesn't feel that we're being safe on our own. It's for our own good. We're important for her." She said casually.

"So, you think someone knows what we're doing?"

She shrugged, "I'm not sure, there's always spies everywhere…my VOIST is also a very important invention." She said sadly. "Actually, my father began the works. The Iraqis killed him to try to gain the software, as well as my brother."

"I'm sorry, Mei-Lin." Reid said quietly as they took their seats.

She shrugged, "It's okay, it happened two years ago. INTERPOL has taken care of me since. I mean they've been keeping a close eye on me…so far there had been three near attempts." She took a sip on her drink.

"Three attempt?" Reid stared at her. "You mean three kidnap attempt?"

She nodded, "Yeah, but INTERPOL managed to stop them while I finish VOIST and other things."

His interests perked, "Oh? What other things?"

She smiled mysteriously, "Sorry, I can't say…top secret projects."

He looked disappointed, "Oh. I see."

She smiled, "Don't worry, it's not that major, Spencer. I'm just taking over a lot of my father's unfinished projects and then some…some of them are kind of boring stuff, really."

He grinned, "You must be pretty smart."

She shrugged, "Not really…I'm always under my daddy's shadow. I'd love to prove to all that I'm my own person."

"Well, I think you are," He said shyly. "I mean, you must be to do this stuff and continue your father's works…what's your IQ?"

She frowned at him, "Oh, don't laugh…I mean, ever time I told a guy my IQ, they fled." She looked down at the shredded paper napkin.

Reid removed her 'handiwork' from her hands and tossed them in the trash can and sat back down. "I have the same problem, and I have a big problem speaking my mind. Emily…she, well she never fail to tell me about my brutal honesty and lack of discretion."

She laughs, "Yeah, she tells me that a lot and she's brutal about it too." She watched him closely. "We kinda have a bit in common."

He looked at her and smiled, "Yeah, so it seems…and you haven't answer my question…"

"Here you are, lunch for two…and two plates." The server laid out a large platter on their table and two plates with utensils.

The steamy aroma of seafood was filling the air around them as Reid sniffed at the platter, Mei-Lin began to scoop their plate and placed it in front of them. "Dig in, Spencer. Bon appetite!"

He grinned as he picked up a fork and began to eat. "You are right, this is great!" He spoke through a mouthful of pasta and seafood.

She chuckled at him, "I told you so! The best seafood ever! And it's cheap." She closed her eyes as she savored the flavor, "Mmmm, so good, right?" When she opened her eyes, she looked ahead and saw something unusual; two men were approaching them fast and they were armed.

Reid saw them as well and instinctively, he pushed her down from the table, "Get down, get down!" He fell down on top of her using his body and covered her as he unholstered his gun and fired a shot at one of the men. The two body guards who were standing nearby pulled their weapons out and shot the two men instantly, they lay dead not five feet from Reid and Mei-Lin.

"Not again! Not again!" She began to sob.

"Shh…It's okay, Mei-Lin…they're dead." Reid said as he turned to look over to see their dead eyes staring upwards and then the screams of the food court patrons as they scrambled around and about.

"Are you two all right?" The guards bent down and were looking over them.

Reid nodded at them, "Yeah, we're fine, she's shaken up…"

"I'm fine, Spencer." Mei-Lin cut in. "I'm okay." She was angry now as she shoved Reid away from her as she tried to stand up, "I'm okay. See!" She held her shaky hands out for the guards' inspection.

They nodded and one of them got on his phone, "Agent Prentiss, we have a situation…" He began to relay the incident to her.

"Yes ma'am." He nodded and placed his phone back in his pocket and spoke to Reid and Mei-Lin, "Agent Prentiss will be here directly."

Reid groaned, "You had to snitch." He muttered.

The two guards stared at him and shook their heads, "Sorry, we have to report every incident." They nodded to him before they stepped away to attend to the two dead men.

Mei-Lin was about to move away when Reid pulled at her, she glared at him, "What?"

He released his hold, "Just making sure you're not going to wander off."

"I'm not, just going to see who those two dirt bags are…were." She was still angry.

Reid nodded but he accompanied her to them.

Standing by their sides, Mei-Lin asked the guards, "Any ID's?"

The guard shook his head, "Unfortunately, they're not packing any. They did not want to be ID'ed. It'd have to be done through DNA. We're waiting for the medical examiner's arrival."

She nodded.

Five minutes later, Emily and Hotch arrived.

"What happen?" She asked as she looked over the younger girl with concern.

"Are you two all right?" Hotch asked.

They nodded as they told them what happened again. Emily then went over to the guards and they told her their versions which matched the story as well.

The ME soon arrived and upon examining them, found that the two men were from the Middle East.

"But until I run their DNA, I will know more about their identities, Agent Prentiss." The ME nodded at her.

"Thank you, Dr. Mangawa. And I don't have to remind you that this is a priority case."

He nodded and began to direct his assistants to bag the bodies.

Emily then received another phone call where she took it aside from everyone else.

Ten minutes later she turned to the group, "Um…Reid, how are you on your interpretation?"

"Done with 50 books. And as soon as we're done with all this, we should be heading back and continue."

Emily nodded. "Okay, there is a slight change of plans though," She turned to Mei-Lin, "You, little one, are not going home for a while."

Mei-Lin frowned, "Why not? What's going, Agent Prentiss?"

"That was Tomas, he and the gang found bombs in your apartment." Emily told her.

"My…my…apartment?" Mei-Lin's eyes widened. "But…who?"

Emily shrugged, "Who else? The Arabs. So, you can't go home."

Mei-Lin shook her head, "Then where am I going?" she waved her hands about her.

"You're coming with me, kiddo." Emily began to walk towards the guards.

"Wait…wait, Agent Prentiss! What about my clothes? My laptop?"

Emily turned around to face her, "Tomas managed to save your stuff out of your apartment but as far as going back there, it's a no-go. Sorry kid."

"Wait a minute, Tomas went through my dresser and pilfer my clothes…underwear?"

Emily chuckled, "Relax, Mei-Mei, he had a female officer doing it, he refused to touch your …er…how did he say it? Unmentionables? Yeah." She laughed. "Unmentionables, kind of an old word, but a female officer packed your stuff, along with your electronic gadgets, once they find them safe."

Mei-Lin sighed, "At least, it's a female that did it or I'll never hear the end of it from him! You know what a big tease he is."

Emily grinned, "If he gives you a hard time, let me know and I'll take care of him. Or better yet, tell Walter."

Mei-Lin began to smile, "Yes…Walter…he'll do."

"Come on, are you two able to get back to work?"

They nodded.

"I'll escort you back to the dungeons." Emily began to walk towards her car.

Hotch quickly caught up with her, "Is that a good idea?"

Emily looked up at him, "What do you mean?"

"This bomb scare, are they able to get back to work?"

Emily turned to watch Reid who was walking and talking to Mei Lin as they followed her.

"It'll give them a distraction and Hotch, we can't delay or we'll have to turn over everything back to Syria."

Hotch nodded, "Yeah, you're right. And we still need to figure the second location."

Emily nodded. "And a few more locations too."

…

End of Chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8

Acceptable Risk – Chapter 8

.

Mrs. Johnson glared at her, "This is beginning to look like a bed and breakfast, Ms. Emily."

Emily laughed, "It's just temporarily, Mrs. Johnson. Be a dear and set up the other bedroom, please?" She hugged the white-haired lady. "You know you like to be kept busy."

The older lady harrumphed and went upstairs and prepared the other guest room as Emily had asked her. Emily could have sworn she saw the older woman was smiling when she left.

Emily turned to Mei-Lin, "Just set your stuff in the den for now until your room is ready."

"Are you sure it's not an inconvenience? I can take a hotel room." She said as she set her duffel bags down and looked around, "Oh…is that…Shakespeare?" She walked to stand in front of the glass book shelf and began reading the old spines. "Oh my god! These are original bindings…"

Emily smiled as she continued her way towards the living room where she was greeted by her cats, "Hey Sergio!" She bent down and picked up the black cat and stroked him.

Mei-Lin poked her head into the room, "Who's Sergio? Oh! It's a cat! How adorbs!" She made a beeline to Emily and took the black cat from her and began hugging the creature tightly to her, Sergio began to struggle to get away from her, "You are so cute!"

Thelonious suddenly made an appearance and began demanding attention. Mei-Lin laughed, "Oh my god! How many cats do you have, Agent Prentiss?" She looked around the room, expecting to see more cats appearing.

Emily grinned, "Just these two devils," She picked up Thelonious, "I'm no cat lady…two is the max for me. And please call me Emily."

Mei-Lin smiled and nodded as she placed Sergio down and patted Thelonious.

Twenty minutes later, they were all sitting down in the kitchen for dinner.

"Mmm, Mrs. Johnson! I see it's _Cog au vin_ tonight! My favorite!" Emily grinned as she ate hungrily, "And couscous with golden raisins. Delish!"

Mrs. Johnson beamed happily.

Hotch nodded, "Yes, this is delicious, thank you Mrs. Johnson, you've outdone yourselves again."

Reid nodded enthusiastically.

She beamed happily, "Well, you're welcome. Eat up, there's plenty in the pot. And after that, there's dessert…strawberry and cream, they're in season." She smiled.

They all grinned, "Strawberries? And cream?" Reid started as he paused. "I might never leave here at all!"

Hotch glared at him, "I don't think so, Reid. I'll drag you through the airport if I have to when this is completed. Right, Emily?" He winked at her.

Emily smiled at him shyly.

Mrs. Johnson watched their silent exchanges with interest and then looking up at the time she nodded, "Enjoy, everyone! And goodnight. I'm going to enjoy my grandson." She nodded at them again and left.

They began to eat, "At the rate I'm eating here, I'm going to gain some weight." Hotch grinned. "I'll have to take my clothes to the tailor when I get back home."

They laughed.

"If you'd like some exercise, Sam loves some help at his barn in rounding up his pigs in the morning and those pigs are no tame little hogs." Emily chuckled. "It's quite a work out."

Hotch smiled, "I might take this Sam up for a recreation exercise."

Emily shook her head. "Trust me, Hotch, it's not a recreation work out."

Half an hour later, dinner and a bowl each of delicious dessert eaten, they pitched in to help cleaned up and retired into the living room.

"If you don't mind," Mei-Lin remained standing, "I'd like to take a shower?"

Emily nodded, "Oh yes, go ahead, your room is upstairs, second door on the right, make yourself at home…I have some correspondents to catch up….Skype night with a few friends from the States." She looked at her watch. "In about 15 minutes, as a matter of fact."

She nodded and went up to the rooms.

Emily pulled her laptop out from the desk near a shelf and began to log on.

"Mind if we join you?" Reid and Hotch asked her.

She shook her head, "No…they're expecting you."

Soon, the faces of JJ and Garcia, and surprisingly Morgan came on the screen.

"Oh my god! This is such a weird thing to see you guys!" Garcia's shocked face said.

Emily smiled as Hotch and Reid leaned near her, "Hey to you, too, PG." She greeted. "How is it going over there?"

"All's good, we miss you, Hotch, and Reid…and Emily of course."JJ smiled.

"Did you open our gifts?" Garcia asked.

"Oh yeah…thanks…and Sergio, thank you too."

Garcia smiled happily. "It was a custom made kitty tower."

"You could have bought it anywhere." Hotch said.

Emily shook her head, "No…it's specially made for Serge, he's particular in his comfort zone."

He rolled his eyes, "You paid customs just for Sergio's sleeping tower? Really?"

"Hey! He likes it. And he thanks you for transporting it all the way here." She grinned.

Reid and Hotch shook their heads.

"So Spence, what's going on with you?" JJ asked him.

"And you, Hotch? Done any sightseeing?" He grinned.

"Oh, yes, plenty Morgan." Hotch couldn't help but glanced at Emily.

JJ, Garcia, and Morgan saw the look and reacted with a slight surprise; they all did not know about the break-up between he and Beth as well.

Only Rossi knew about it and he had not told anyone; he was slightly busy with his own personal problem.

In the meantime, three sets of eyebrows shot up, "Oh!"

Emily frowned when she saw their looks and was slightly confused. "Don't you guys have any cases?"

They shook their heads, "None so far…surprisingly, Strauss is nice to us and left us alone." Garcia informed them.

"Strauss?" Emily asked, "I find it hard to believe…is she thawing?"

They shrugged, "Maybe…leopards can change spots."

Just then, Hotch's phone buzzed, it was Jessica. He smiled, "It's Jack! I'll take it in the other room, I see you guys later." He then left, his dimples deepening even more.

"Wow, he's like a really changed Hotch." Garcia watched him disappeared the screen. "I mean, no suit, no stoic Hotch, so totally unreal and he's smiling a lot...are you sure you picked up the real boss man?"

"That is so true, Mamma." Morgan grinned. "What did you do to him, Em?"

She shrugged, "Told him to relax and not wear one of those stuffy suits of his, I guess." She smiled at her friends. "I left all his suits in the airport." She grinned with them.

Reid turned to watch Mei-Lin entered the room and sat down near them, Emily arched her brows as she grinned at him, JJ and Garcia noticed, "Who's that?"

"She's kind of my geek tech, Mei-Lin and she's staying at my place for a while…there was a problem at her apartment."

"Oh…"Garcia and JJ nodded. "How convenient." Her brows arched high with delight.

Derek shook his head with exasperation, "Women."

….

When they went off the Skype line, Hotch came back from the other room grinning, "Jack sends his love, Emily. He misses you." He came to sit beside her on the couch. Sergio instantly leapt onto his lap and settled down and closed his eyes.

Hotch smiled, "It seems your beast likes me…I wonder what his mistress feels about it."

"Betrayed." Emily said at once with a grin. "Usually he takes a while to get use to strangers."

Hotch leans in and whispered, "Maybe he sensed I'm no stranger."

She looked up at him, "Maybe."

He smiled, "What are you working on?" He quickly changed the subject, sensing her discomfort.

She showed him the notes, "The second translation, the one in Camden Town, it's not far from here. I think our second suspect is in the gemstone business."

"Looks like we're going to be buying some jewelry of sorts…tomorrow?" Hotch watched her.

She nodded, "Oh yes. I think I'll require a complete wedding set." She teased him, she waved her bare left hand at him.

"Might as well...make our rushed wedding 'official'." He smiled as he shook his head.

She stared at him, "Oh…I…yeah, I…the…I was teasing, Hotch." She began to stutter as her cheeks began to redden.

"I know." He nodded.

She cleared her throat, "Get this, the name of the jeweler's is called Tiffani, with an 'I', real catchy and it's run by Abdul Al Babur. He's been there for over four years. Three assistants and they are all from the Middle East."

Hotch nodded as he continued to watch her.

She looked up and noticed him, "Are you listening?"

He nodded, "Oh yes, Em. Tiffani, Abdul Al Babur…" He reached over and lightly stroked her bare arm and noticed it instantly goosed, "Cold?" He asked her softly.

She shook her head, "No…it feels nice…what are you doing exactly?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, just …nothing."

"It's getting late, Hotch, we should turn in…early start…briefing tomorrow at the –POL." She muttered. Then she looked up and smiled.

Hotch followed her gaze and grinned, "I see the kids had fallen asleep."

Mei-Lin and Reid were passed out on the couches, Thelonious on Mei-Lin's lap, snoozing.

"We should get them to bed." Emily said as she placed her notes aside.

Hotch nodded, "You get Mei-Lin, and I'll get Reid."

She nodded as she stood and went over to the couch to rouse up the young Asian woman.

For the older ones, sleep took a long time; Emily tossed about in her bed and sat up suddenly; she remembered she didn't put her notes up in a secure box.

Normally, she wouldn't have bothered as everyone here in the house was trustworthy but old habits…

She came out of her bedroom and walked down to the living room to find Hotch sitting alone, his face buried in his hands.

"Hotch?" She went over to him directly. "Are…Are you okay? What's the matter?" she sat on the coffee table directly from him and placed her hands on his knees. "What's going on? Bad news at home?" She looked on with concern. "You need to go home? Is Jack okay?"

He shook his head as he removed his hands and place them on top of hers, "No, Emily. I just feel a moment of …contemplation."

She continued to frown at him, "I…don't get it. I mean…is it Beth?" She held her breath and pursed her lips before she shook her head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't ask such a personal question. I'll leave you be." She stood up began to move away from him but he stopped her.

He tightened his hands on hers, "Stay. Stay with me?"

She looked at down at their clenched hands and then at him and nodded and sat down again.

"Beth and I broke up, Emily. Over a month ago." He finally owned up.

"Oh. I'm sorry, Hotch."

He shrugged, "It was just not meant to be, we…I just couldn't do it."

She nodded.

Hotch looked at her and then around them, "It's nice out here." He continued. "I could get used to it."

She nodded. "I know, I really like it out here too."

He looked at her, "Emily, I'm wondering if there's any chance you and I…"

She turned to stare at him, "You and me? You mean us?"

He smiled and nodded as he leaned close to her.

"Hotch…what are you doing?" Emily frowned at him, she was not used to this new him.

"Something I wanted to do since I saw you at the airport yesterday." He gathered her to him and kissed her!

_Oh my!_ Emily's head sparkled brightly and fireworks began to shoot off as she tasted him!

All she could think of was his lips were super soft and so utterly amazing!

Her head began to buzz and ring incessantly.

Hotch began to pull back but Emily shook her head, she was not ready to let go!

He chuckled, "Em…your phone…it's ringing."

"Wha?" She blinked as she looked up at his eyes.

"Your cell phone, it's ringing."

"Who'd call at this time?" Emily muttered; she was enjoying the bazooka kiss!

Picking up her phone, she saw that is was one of her team.

"Prentiss! this had better be important Tomas!" She griped.

"Get out! Get out Emily! Everyone! There's a bomb! We've detected a bomb! Now!"

…..

End of Chapter 8


	9. Chapter 9

Acceptable Risk – Chapter 9

.

"Did you find the bomb, Tomas?" Emily glared at her team.

Nodding his head, he pointed at the black box, "It's not really discreet, if you ask me." He shrugged within his bomb gear as he removed his mask.

"I didn't, Tomas." Emily said. "Do you know who is responsible?"

"It's most likely the Arabs…same people that were at Mei-Lin's place." He said.

"Arabs? What the hell are they looking for?" Emily demanded.

"I think I can help, Emily." Mei-Lin stepped up timidly. She was holding her laptop up and peeking from it. "This."

"What's this?"

"It's a laptop." Tomas said sagely as he looked at it skeptically, as if it was contagious.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Thanks genius. I can see it's a laptop. But what's in it and why, Mei-Lin? Are you hiding something?"

The young lady shrugged and looked at those around her, not trusting them.

Pulling Emily aside, she found a quiet spot no one was about, "Okay kiddo, spill."

Hotch and Reid watched them talk as they looked about the house while the bomb squad continued to sweep the area and the neighbourhood.

The two cats were in their cages meowing angrily, they did not like being confined.

"Did you know she had the house swept for bomb?" Reid asked Hotch.

He nodded, "I didn't know they had placed sensors…I didn't know they had bomb sensors for that matter…until now."

"Yeah…high tech stuff. Wish I can get my hands on some of this stuff and place them around my apartment." Reid muttered nervously as he shivered.

Hotch frowned at him, "Relax Reid, your apartment is safe. Those old ladies are harmless." He teased him, speaking of his neighbors.

Reid nodded, "I don't know if I can get comfortable again."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. But there's a squad of security out here for the rest of the night and every night while we're here and until the case is over." One of the bomb squad who had overheard them said.

"Well," They turned when Emily came over. "It's a bigger problem then what we think." She looked at them. "The books Reid's been going over, the Iraqis had gotten wind of it…and as well as the Syrians."

"Oh great, we've gone global." Hotch shook his head.

"That's an understatement, Hotch. MI-6 wants a word with me in the morning and they also want to know why the US FBI is doing here and has his finger in the cookie jar while they are not." She sighed.

Arching his brow, Hotch grinned, "Oh, do I detect a touch of jealousy in the Crown's Intel agency?"

She chuckled, "We've definitely stirred their ire." She yawned and turned to look at her team, "I'll like to get back in and get a few more hours' shut eye."

"Me too." Reid said as she stood closely next to Mei-Lin who looked miserable.

Emily turned to him, "Oh, if anyone asks, say nothing of what you're doing here...except that you're doing the tourist thingy."

Hotch and Reid nodded.

"And Reid, you're helping Mei-Lin with her IQ exams or something like that…MENSA and all that crap." She waved her hands about.

Reid raised his brows high but didn't utter another word.

Tomas came over, helmet in his hand, "All clear boss. You may return to your bedchambers." He looked at them and nodded. "We'll continue to keep a watch on you till the night crew comes over."

Emily nodded, "Thank you, Tomas…how's Josie?"

The man beamed at the mention of his beloved and pregnant wife, "Oh, that woman…she's a sweetheart. She thanks you for the picture of Thelonious." He chuckled. "She's getting large and so…beautiful." He shook his head, his voice full of love for his wife who was expecting his first child.

Emily smiled, "Any day, Tomas, any day. Sorry about the all-nighter."

He shook his head and waved his hand, "No problem, ma'am. The wife knows me job is a 24hr one." He shrugged. "So long the money is good and she gets the pretty dresses, that's all it matters." He nodded at her again and walked away to join the rest of his team.

Hotch came to stand beside her, "They are quite dedicated to you." He watched after the team.

Emily nodded as they began to move back towards the house.

Mei-Lin came to Emily, "Are you sure it's safe to go back?" She asked nervously.

"Oh yeah…the guys swept the place and they will continue to keep it monitored. Don't worry, Mei-Mei. Let's get some sleep." She placed an assuring hand on the young lady's shoulder as they walked on.

As they entered their bedrooms, Hotch pulled Emily aside and whispered, "We're not done yet."

She looked at him, "We're not?"

He shook his head and grinned, "You know that, Emily."

She smiled shyly and nodded, "Yeah, I know." She then lean forward and kissed him quickly, "Good night Hotch." And entered her room and closed it.

Shaking his head, "Minx." He smiled and went into his room happily.

….

The next morning, Emily was at Vauxhall Cross; the headquarters of MI-6. The section chief was Sir Fillion Gallows, a third generation successor in his family.

"Officer Prentiss, how do you do?" He said stiffly, his mustache never moved when he spoke.

"I'm fine, Sir Gallows, and it's Supervisory Special Agent Prentiss. I was allowed to maintain my FBI title."

He blinked surprisingly.

Emily grinned, pleased that she got him with his 'pants down'.

"Er…yes…Agent Prentiss. Er, the reason you're here is that…er…" He blinked even more.

Emily saw that it was his nervous trait. His assistant stood up and spoke, "You did not reveal to us your findings of the crates from Syria."

Emily turned to stare at him, making him cringed, "The crates were not from Syria…however you obtained your information. It was from…." She turned back to the section chief and smiled, "Actually we're not quite sure of it ourselves. So we're having it analyzed. Surely it's within our jurisdiction?"

The two men exchanged looks, "Well…yes, it is…technically. Are you sure it's not Syrian?"

She shook her head, "No, I can read Arabic perfectly."

They frowned at her and nodded finally. "I see." Gallows owed.

"Now, if you don't mind, I have things to do and guests to see to." She was about to leave when the chief spoke up again.

"The FBI… guests, they are from the BAU department?"

She nodded, "I was formerly in the team, Sir Gallows. They're paying me a visit as well as aiding me with an equipment."

"The SEIS?" His assistant blurted out, looking nervously.

Emily whipped her head to him, "What are you talking about?"

He stood up, "Your team member, Wong Mei-Lin, she was working on one of her late father's projects, the SEIS; it's a nuclear disarmament device. It can disarm and armed a nuclear device remotely."

"But isn't it a common device, it's invented." Emily shrugged.

"Well, it is." The assistant said and he gulped nervously as he continued. "But this device did not need any pass codes…so the president's codes will be obsolete…quite nifty."

Gallows turned to stare at him in disbelief, "Nifty, Harold?"

He shrugged, "I can't think of anything else to say, Sir Gallows. It was a brilliant invention."

Emily frowned at the man, "Who are you?"

He turned to her, "I'm Harold Brown, nephew to the secretary of Foreign Ministry, Agent Prentiss." He extended his hand out.

She shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Harold." She looked up at the chief, "If there's nothing else? I have to get back to work."

He nodded, "Of course, just if you will, have a little courtesy…anything that's international and foreign, give us a heads up. I'll be much obliged."

She nodded, "I will, Sir Gallows. Good day to you."

He nodded and Emily left in a hurry.

As soon as she left the building, she called Mei-Lin, "Hey kid…who's this Harold Brown? How well do you know him?"

"Harold Brown?" Mei-Lin repeated. "Oh my god…Emily…I'll explain when you get back, phone's not safe!" She then hung up right away.

Emily glared at her phone and frowned as she headed to her car.

"Agent Emily Prentiss!"

She turned around and saw him.

"Hey it's you!" She smiled at him but faltered when she saw that he was not. "I take it this is not a social meeting?"

It was her five-times-turned-down-date, the agent from MI-5.

Uh oh…this was no coincidence… "Lucas? That's going on?"

"Take a walk with me," he pointed to a nearby park across the MI-6 building. "It's a nice day."

She knew she did not have a choice; so far her day had been a strange one and it was getting stranger as she joined the MI-5 agent.

She waited until they were on the cobbled stones of the park, "What's going on, Lucas? Are we being followed?"

He smiled a little, "I'm glad you're in this business already and I don't have to explain much to you and yes, we're being followed." He took her hand and looped it into his elbow.

She grinned as she played along, giving whoever was following them something to wonder as she lay her head on his shoulder. Lucas smiled.

"Ah! You're so obliging, why haven't we gotten together before?" He said softly as he patted her hand on his elbow.

"Because we've been busy, remember you turned me down five times?"

"Oh yeah, I'm such a bloody fool. My apologies."

She chuckled. "So, what's going on?"

"The crates you found, we know about it." He said directly.

"Hmm, it seems the secret is out suddenly…I wonder who snitch?"

"It's hard to keep secrets out here but we're not really interested in it because it doesn't concern us…yet."

"Al Qaeda." She revealed.

"As I said, not our business…yet. But out of curiosity, any threat to the Crown?"

"Yes and no…it listed sleeper cells here which we've discovered a few and a few more in the US."

"So, that's why your friends from the FBI are here to lend a hand?"

"I …I have to get back, Lucas." She said as she stirred them back to her car.

He held her hand longer, restraining her.

"So…the FBI?"

She arched her brows, "You've been busy."

He grinned, "It's our business to know everything around here."

"They're here to help, Lucas, I can assure you." She frowned at him. "Please trust me."

"I know, Emily. But I'm under orders to find out what they're doing here."

"They're here as guests…you could have called and asked, I'll be more than glad to tell you."

"I'm sorry, Emily…I should have trusted you but as it is we must tread carefully…US and British relationship are on shaky grounds."

She nodded, "Yeah, tell me about it and we're but a bunch of pawns on a giant chess set."

He stared at her for a moment before nodding in agreement.

They arrived at her car.

She was about to open the driver's door when he held his hand out and he bent down and looked underneath and saw something and pulled it out.

He gave it to her; it was a GPS box. "Yours?"

Emily frowned, "That wasn't there before."

Lucas nodded, "This looks like Harold Brown's handiwork, he's a double spy or suspected double spy; we haven't proven anything so far and needed some hard evidence."

"Do you need some help?" She looked at him and then at the device.

He grinned, "What do you have in mind?"

"Oh…plenty but we could have some fun with Mr. Brown and his little box."

He arched an eye brow at her, "All right. I'm game."

"Take this for a long ride…very long ride." She grinned.

He chuckled, "Sounds fun enough. And as I have a few out of town errands and a few of my colleagues as well, we will oblige this…fun and game for you."

She leaned in and pecked his cheek, "Thanks pal. You're too good."

He grinned widely at her gesture. "You owe me big, Agent Prentiss."

She stared at him, "Name it and I'll deliver your favorite bottle of wine…or beer." She laughed as she hopped into her car and started it.

Lucas shook his head as he watched her leave, waving to her, "If I had known she's so much fun…" He shook his head as his cell phone buzzed… "North…"

…..

End of Chapter 9

.

A/N : I know! those of you who knows me knows I'm a big Richard Armitage fan as well, so i couldn't resist including him in here! don't spank me!

P.


	10. Chapter 10

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 10

.

"My darling, what about this?" Hotch smiled lovingly at his 'wife'.

Emily slid the large gemstone into her finger and twisted it about, allowing the stone sparkle about and sighed, "It's nice but…"

Hotch sighed, recognizing her expressions, "You've tried over twenty rings, honey! What is it? The stones are not to your liking? Not large enough?" He threw his hands in defeat. "How about we go to another shop?" He began to get up from his seat, readying to leave.

The clerk, alerted to Hotch, began to wave at him, "Wait! Wait!" he held his hands out to him. "We have more rings in the back, bigger carats…4 to 5 carats, bigger if your wife desires. I'll bring you to our special bridal room…we don't usually show it to anyone but I can see your bride is looking for _the_ special one." He smiled at Hotch.

Hotch in return, gave the clerk a wry look, "What gave you the hint? I mean we've been here for only two hours." He said in a tired tone.

The clerk, in his heavy Middle-Eastern accent grinned wider, "Most apologies, come…come." He waved at them as he beckoned to the two agents to a concealed door he opened. "Please follow me, I'll show you the best rings, your bride will be happy… most happy! This delayed wedding you are planning will be the most talk about event and the jewelry will be the envy of every women present…I can assure you." He said confidently.

Emily smiled, "Really?" She turned to Hotch, "Come on then, darling! I want to see more rings…the bigger, the better! And bracelets, necklaces, pendants! Oh, earrings too!" She gushed. "My cousin's wedding last year was still talked about and I want to top it." Hotch rolled his eyes for the benefit of the clerk. Emily continued, "You cannot imagine the humiliation, my darling. Her jewelry alone cost her parents 2 million pounds! I don't think so! You can double that, can't you, darling?"

Hotch nodded, "Of course, whatever you desire." He waved his hand nonchalantly. "Your cousin will envy you."

Emily leaned over, placed her arms around him and kiss him soundly, "You are too good to me, my dear!"

Hotch grinned, "I know." He turned to her and returned her kiss, "Now, will you pick your wedding set?"

Emily smiled, "Yes, my beloved husband!"

Hotch sighed, "Remember, money is no problem." He said with a large grin on his face.

Outside the shop, the INTERPOL team in the car was listening in with interest.

"They really sound pretty convincing." Officer Williams turned to his partner, 2nd LT Tim Canter.

He nodded in agreement. "They've obviously worked together before."

"Yeah," Williams chuckled as he continued. "Wondered how long and how closely?" he gave him a knowing look.

Canter laughed. "Oh…I see, really, Williams. You're right, they do sound…tight."

"You do know they can hear us." Williams reminded his partner.

"Hey, you started it first." He grinned sheepishly. "Anyways, I'm not going to incur the wrath of the boss or it's endless push-ups with Walter."

Canter nodded and the two men continued their job.

Back in the jewelry shop…

The clerk removed the standard large black rectangular velvet box from a cabinet and laid it on the glass table in front of the two agents.

"Here we are, Mr. Fester, and Mrs. Fester, our most exclusive collection…"

Emily bent low to inspect the rings and pulled one out to try it on and returned it immediately and sighed.

Hotch looked at her, "What's wrong now, sweetheart?"

"It's…nice…but it's not what I'm looking for." She frowned. "My cousin's ring was bigger than these…"

They began to stand up when Emily uttered something in Farsi.

The clerk jerked his head up instantly and started at her and replied in the same language, "What did you just say?"

Emily blinked her eyes and said, "I want to see your diamond and emerald collection. Rubies, if you have them too. Pure ones…not those lab recreated gemstones."

"Oh…Yes…yes…"

"Wait!"

They turned around and a man in a pristine three-piece suit stood by the door, "Who are you exactly?" He asked the two.

Hotch stood up, "I'm Stan Festers, this is my wife, we're looking for a wedding set for her, and a matching set for me." He extended his hand out to shake. "And you are?"

"Abdul Al Babur, how do you do Mr. Festers?" He said proudly as he shook his hand.

"Well," Hotch nodded as he removed his credentials, as well as Emily. "Actually, I'm not Stan and you're under arrest on suspicion of terrorism. Please, if you'll come with us…quietly without causing a scene." He turned to the clerk, "We do not want to cause any panic or embarrassment to your fine and ritzy establishment. I suggest you remain quiet about this to your coworkers, right?"

The clerk nodded nervously.

Stunned, Abdul glared at Hotch, "You have no proof!"

Producing a set of photos, Emily showed him and spoke in Farsi, "Here's your proof, Abdul; you were seen with this man….the brother of Osama bin Laden."

Eyes closed, Abdul sighed, "I knew I should not have agreed to meet with him."

"So, where is he?" Emily asked him.

He shrugged. "Have no idea. He contacts me."

Emily nodded to Hotch, "Let's go…we'll let INTERPOL handle the rest."

Hotch nodded, "Fine by me."

Abdul suddenly turned to his assistance, "Make sure they don't find it!" He spoke in Urdu before he walked on with Hotch.

"What did he say?" Hotch turned to Emily.

She shook her head, "I…I don't know… I think it's Urdu…Pakistani or something." She turned to the assistant, "What did he say to you?"

The assistant shrugged, "I don't know what you mean, ma'am." He glanced briefly towards a panel before he looked back at her with a blank stare.

Emily glared at the clerk and held her gun by his temple, "Tell me what he said to you or I'll blow your ugly head off!"

The young man shook his head in fright, his hands began to shake, "I…he said…don't let you get it."

"Get what?" She yelled at him.

He flinched, "A map….it's all I know…it's all I know!" He pointed at the wooden panel.

Emily pushed him off and walked to the panel he indicated and pulled it opened and saw a piece of paper and slid it out; it was a map of the United Kingdom.

She turned to him, "What's this about?"

The clerk shrugged, "I don't know! Boss…he don't tell me anything! I'm just a lowly clerk…sell jewelry, is all I am here to do!" He threw his hands about in resignation.

Emily stared at him for a moment before she reached for her cell phone, "Canter…lock this entire store down. Get a unit here and do a complete search." She ended the call and turned her gaze back to him, "You and your friends are coming to the INTERPOL for questioning." She then left him.

….

Emily met Hotch outside and said, "I have to get back to the dungeons and check with Mei Lin and Reid." He nodded. She continued, "What about lunch afterwards?"

Hotch nodded, "Sure, I have to call Strauss and Jack but lunch sounds great."

"The books need to be looked into…This is bigger than what it is…bigger…" Her phone buzzed and she looked down and saw it was from MI-6.

"Shit…not now, Gallows!" She muttered.

"Problem?" Hotch inquired.

Emily shook her head, "Nosy 'neighbors'…I have to take this call, excuse me, Hotch." She walked away from him before she answered her phone.

Hotch watched her for a moment before he, too, picked up his phone and began making calls.

Ten minutes later, a very angry Emily stomped towards their car, her hands clenched tightly against her sides.

"…such a foolish man!...if I told that fool I am not lying about the crates…Ooh! I'm tempted to shove him in the damn box and ship him off to the Indian Ocean!"

Hotch was standing next to her by the time she was done with her tirade, as well as her team.

"MI-6? MI-5?" Canter asked her with a grin.

Emily glared at him, "-6, Lt. Canter, and it's not funny!"

The men began to chuckled, except for Hotch who didn't find the situation amusing at all.

Finally, Canter, seeing Hotch's confusion, explained; "It's like this, Agent Hotchner, MI-6's head boss Sir Gallows is known to be a nosy such and such. Loves to stick his nose and ears into everything, and everyone's businesses, including MI-5. -5's boss never liked him as well, makes Gallows' life as miserable as possible and Emily here, has joined in the 'fun' and began to torture -6 whenever possible." The team laughed again.

Hotch smiled but Emily was not as she stared beyond them; Hotch stopped smiling and joined her, "Want to talk?"

She turned to him, "I've been asked to turn over the books to -6."

Hotch shook his head, "That's crap!"

"I know. He's such a bastard…I know it's that ass hole, Harold Brown."

"Who's Harold Brown?"

"That's why I need to get back to INTERPOL, Mei-Lin seemed to know him, she didn't want to talk about him over the phone."

"Well, let's go. The faster we know the details, the quicker we know what we're up against." Hotch reached over and touched her elbow gently.

She smiled, "Okay, let's go." She turned to her team, "Guys…we're heading back, stay here and do a thorough sweep, please. Please find something that ties this damn place with Al Qaeda."

They gave her a salute, "Will do, boss."

Canter turned to Williams, "I don't know about you but I think boss is ready to shoot Gallows." He shook his head.

Williams chuckled, "Wish I can see it when that happens."

"Yeah, me too. Come on, let's sweep the place…Tomas will be arriving soon…you know what a stickler he is."

Williams nodded as the two men began to walk towards the jewelry store.

…..

"Okay, Mei-Lin…Harold Brown." Emily looked at the younger woman.

Mei-Lin's eyes were wide opened and then turned into derision, "That man is a traitor!" She spat out.

"What do you mean?"

Throwing her hands out, "He's the one responsible for Daddy's and Tony's deaths. Yes, I blamed him for their deaths. He betrayed them."

Hotch, Emily, Mei-Lin, and Reid were sitting in Emily's office, her door was closed. Mr. Weaver was out to lunch, which was a fortunate thing as it gave them complete privacy to discuss the situation at hand.

Reid had almost completed his translation; he had 20 books to go when Emily pulled him out of the cubicle for his lunch break. She brought them to her office for questioning.

"Start from the beginning, Mei-Lin." Emily urged her.

Glancing at the BAU agents she shook her head.

Hotch and Reid stood up, "Perhaps if Reid and I were to leave you two…"

Emily nodded, "Okay, if you don't mind, Hotch?"

He shook his head, "No, of course not, Reid and I will wait at the cafeteria downstairs." And they left."

Alone, Emily turned back to Mei-Lin, "Okay, we're alone, you can tell me now. What's going on, kiddo?"

Mei-Lin took a deep breath and letting out a sigh, she nodded, "You know Daddy was involved in working on the nuclear disarmament coding system."

Emily nodded.

"Well, he discovered the codes…and it was not the ones the world leaders have. The Arabs somehow found out and wanted the codes…"

"So, they killed your father…and Tony." Emily finished her sentence.

Mei-Lin nodded, "They took Tony first," her tears fell rapidly as she swiped them away. "His body was discovered three days later…tortured and bu…burned." She covered her face and cried.

Emily went to her and gathered the young woman into her arms and consoled her; she knew the story.

INTERPOL had intercepted a message from Middle East, Dr. Michael Wong, a renowned scientist and physicist was kidnapped together with his assistant and future son-in-law, Dr. Anthony Mandell.

"We were to be married…" Mei-Lin continued. "In one year, after I'd completed my doctorate, we'd have married. Daddy…" she shook her head.

"Mei-Mei, you didn't know…the Arabs, they were relentless. The INTERPOL tried their best to find your father and Tony in time. I'm sorry, sweetheart…I'm so sorry."

Mei-Lin shook her head, "It's not your fault, Emily…you were not here yet."

"Still, we're a team and you're important to us."

She nodded.

Emily took a breath, "So…Harold Brown?"

Wiping her tears, "Yeah, scumbag of the century…Harold worked for Daddy for a few years before…Tony started. He was caught by Daddy stealing his software to the SEIS program…"

"Wait…what's this SEIS?" Emily asked her. "I heard Harold mentioned about it."

Mei-Lin looked at her, "What did he say?"

Emily shrugged, "He mentioned that it's a device you're working on that arms and disarms a nuclear weapon remotely. He seemed to admire the device."

Mei-Lin nodded, "Yes, he's very envious of Daddy's work. He doesn't understand everything but he wants it. It's dangerous software; Daddy shouldn't have invented it, it was a mistake." She took a deep breath before she continued. "It's a known fact that he's in it for the money…" she looked at Emily with conviction, "If he's gotten his hands on the software, he'll sell it to the highest bidder, the Iranians are prepared to offer him millions and millions of dollars. And now, the North Korea is prepared to up the ante…double the Iranians offer."

Emily frowned, "The Iranians and the North Korea."

Mei-Lin nodded, "Makes sense. They'll pay for it to get it."

"And since they took out your dad and your fiance… we have to make sure nothing comes to harm you."

Mei-Lin nodded as she shook her hands, "And I'm afraid…I don't know what to do…who to trust."

"Well, for one; you can trust me...the INTERPOL, Agents Hotchner and Reid."

"Yes, I trust Spencer…he seem very nice and trustworthy…very like Tony." She said softly.

Emily smiled, "Well, I don't know about your late fiancé but Reid is very likeable and he's good at his job. As for Hotch…Agent Hotchner, he's good at what he does. We have worked together for a long time and I trusted them implicitly."

Mei-Lin nodded, "Good, I'm glad I talked to you."

"Me too."

Emily's phone rang

"Prentiss." She answered. A moment later, "Okay…bring them all in, we'll look over them."

Emily stood up and said, "Let's go find the BAU fellas. There's a problem."

She turned to Mei-Lin, "You kept the software safe?"

She nodded.

"Good, make sure no one gets a hold of it."

"Only the ancestors knew of the locations." Mei-Lin muttered as both women left the office.

Emily frowned as she walked beside her, confused by her cryptic sentence.

….

End of Chapter 10


	11. Chapter 11

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 11

.

It was late in the evening when Emily, Mei-Lin and the two BAU men returned home. Mrs. Johnson had left for the evening by then but she had kept dinner on the stove; Sheppard's pie and freshly baked sourdough bread. Dessert was blueberry cobbler.

After a quick wash-up, the four sat down gratefully for a delicious and hearty meal. Discussion on the table was about the day's event; Reid's interpretation of the books.

"Most of the books was about how the injustice done to the people in the Middle East." Reid began. "Repression is the normal anger expressed here in all the books…although, in the books, there were a lot of anger express…"

Hotch and Emily rolled their eyes while Mei-Lin leaned in with fascination.

"Reid," Emily cut in. "The concise version, please." She arched her brow after for emphasis.

His face slightly reddened, Reid nodded, "It's something to do with nuclear control."

Emily and Mei-Lin exchanged looks.

Hotch caught their exchanges, "What is it? You two knew about it?"

Emily turned to him, "This information does not leave this room."

The two men nodded.

"The crate intercepted by INTERPOL is actually not a coincidence." Emily revealed. "Clyde Easter and I removed it from Syria when we were there six months ago."

Mei-Lin turned to stare at her, "But I thought you went to Beirut…to…"

Emily shook her head, "Need to know, Mei-Lin. INTERPOL intercepted a signal … it's from your father." She said softly.

The young Asian stood up suddenly, "Daddy! You mean he's still alive!" Where is he?"

Emily looked at her, "Last known signal was Pakistan."

"Pakistan! Why Pakistan?"

"I don't know. Whoever wants SEIS, wants it badly, and is prepared to pay a lot."

Mei-Lin shook her head, "I don't understand, Daddy…he does not have it."

"Emily," Hotch interrupted. "Mei-Lin's father…was he the reason you and Easter were…?"

Emily nodded. "Dr. Wong and Dr. Mandell…Mei-Lin's late fiancé, were kidnapped in the middle of the night a couple of years ago. It was not until recently…six months ago, we received news that one of them was still alive… it was Dr. Wong. We did find Dr. Mandell's body washed up in a river. We had to confirm his identity through DNA."

Mei-Lin began to weep more.

"I'm sorry, Mei-Lin." Reid whispered to her.

"It's okay…you didn't know about him." She said.

Reid nodded awkwardly.

"What's this SEIS?" Hotch asked them.

Emily explained to him.

Hotch's expression darkened, "Why would he do something so dangerous? In the wrong hands…"

"We're aware of that, Hotch." Emily looked miserable. "But it's done. And now they want it, and they're looking for it." She stared at Mei-Lin.

"You have it on you?" Hotch asked her.

Mei-Lin nodded.

"And you're walking around…freely…you've put all our lives in danger!"

"Hotch! That's enough!" Emily snapped at him.

"He's right, Emily. I have put everyone in danger…I mean look at the bomb scare in your house… and at my apartment."

Emily shook her head, "It doesn't matter, it's part of our job."

Mei-Lin shook her head, "No, I've put all of you in danger." She removed a long piece of jade pendant from her neck and handed it to Emily, "The SEIS program is encrypted in here. Daddy created the pendant into a flash-drive; no one knew about it."

Emily took it from her and examined it, "I thought it was your family surname carved into the stone…the Chinese character, WONG."

Mei-Lin smiled, "It is and yet it's also a flash-drive. He called it a family heirloom. It's a family joke."

Emily chuckled, "So, that's what you mean when you said only the ancestors knew the location."

Mei-Lin smiled as she nodded.

Reid grinned, "I think it's smart of your dad to do."

Mei-Lin beamed at Reid.

"What now, Emily?" Hotch looked at her.

"Well, Dr. Wong is still alive…because they are still looking for it…" She began to walk around the room as she thought about the problem. She then snapped her finger, "Harold Brown!"

Mei-Lin jerked her head up, "Harold! You think he's involved in this? You mean, he's responsible for the kidnappings…and Tony's death?" Her eyes were wide opened.

"Whoa…whoa…kid, let's not jump to conclusion here… we do not have any proof!" Emily rushed to her side. "For all we know, he could be only an interested buyer, that's all."

Mei-Lin shook her head, "I'm not buying it. He's guilty of it, I'm sure. He's hands are dirty!" She folded her hands across her chest in anger. "Ass-Hole!"

Reid arched his brows in silent surprise.

Hotch shook his head.

"Let me talk to MI-5 tomorrow." Emily offered. "I know we don't have much time and I have to turn over the books but I can at least consult with someone, and Clyde. They might give us a better option."

Mei-Lin nodded.

Emily sighed, "So…how about we call it a night?"

They all nodded and stood up. After saying good night they went up to their rooms.

Except for Hotch and Emily.

"Em…wait." Hotch whispered to her, after he made sure Reid and Mei-Lin had gone to their respective rooms.

Emily watched him expectantly as she held her breath; she knew what was coming next…

He held his hand out her as she smiled shyly and grasped it.

He led her to his room and closed the door firmly.

As he gathered her in his arms finally, "Let's hope we won't be interrupted again."

Emily grinned as she leaned into his shoulder, "The house can blow for all I care…I'm not running."

He chuckled as he lifted her chin for a long kiss but not before he said, "Me too and it'll be well worth it."

Their kiss was temporary interrupted by a soft noise…

"Did you hear that?" Emily surfaced from their mind-blowing kiss.

Sighing, Hotch shook his head, "No, just your fantastic lips…" he reached for them again.

Giggling, Emily shook her head as she gave in to him, "I guess I'm hearing things…"

"Mmmmm…." He led her to the bed.

…..

A soft knock on Reid's door….

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Spencer." Mei-Lin whispered.

A moment later, Reid opened the bedroom door, "Hi…is everything okay?"

The young lady gazed at him, "Uh…yes and no…can I come in? I can't sleep…"

Surprised, Reid nodded and stood aside, "Yeah…Oh yeah! Come on in!" He leaned out looking around the hallway as Mei-Lin scooted into his room and closed the door after her.

When he turned to watch her, he found her huddled in his bed.

Sighing, he padded after her and sat on the edge as he watched her. He also saw that both cats warmly ensconced at the foot of his bed.

"Okay…make yourself comfortable…all of you." Reid spread his arms about him.

Mei-Lin laughed, "I hope you don't mind…I don't feel like sleeping alone. Sergio and Thelonious…I have no idea they slept here too, I thought they sleep in Emily's room?"

Reid shrugged, "I…they kept scratching at the door just now until I let them in. And now you." He turned to look at her nervously. "You're fi…fine here…I…don't…I mean…I'm not…I…" he gulped hard as he became lost for words.

Mei-Lin reached over and covered his hand with hers, "I want to talk to you about Tony."

Reid stared at her for a moment before dropping his gaze, "You…don't have to. I'm just sorry about him…" he let the sentence trailed off.

Mei-Lin sighed, "Spencer…I…owe you an explanation. Will you look at me?" She pleaded with him.

He thought for a moment before nodding and looked up at her. "Okay, sure. Then, I have to tell you about…Maeve."

Mei-Lin's eyes widened as she tensed, "Oh…!"

Reading her thoughts, "No!" Reid shook his head, "You're mistaken…she's…she's uh, dead too."

Settling back, Mei-Lin began, "Daddy introduced Tony when he began as his assistance…"

….

End of Chapter 11


	12. Chapter 12

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 12

.

Sitting in the office of MI-5's head boss, Harry Pearce, Emily presented to him and Lucas North copies of the translated scripts Reid had done.

Harry glanced over the files for a while and then looked up at her, "Are you saying Al Qaeda is here?"

She nodded, "INTERPOL has captured three cells, there are two more. The brother of the late bin Laden is still MIA. He is believed to be here in England."

Harry frowned at her and looked over to Lucas, "Do you…?"

Lucas nodded, "Yes, Harry, I do. Believe me, I do. And Harold Brown is the key to leading us and INTERPOL to the brother."

"What is his name?" Harry asked her impatiently. "We can't keep calling him the brother."

Emily grinned, "Well, bin Laden did have many brothers…sisters…but the rumored successor was Omar bin Laden, he was the 23rd son and half brother. He's in his 40s and is known to be as lethal as his late half brother."

Harry shook his head, "Are there any more kinsmen we should be aware of?"

Emily shook her head, "None, as far as INTERPOL can see as potential threat. The others half brothers were either dead or didn't want anything to do with him."

He nodded, "Thank goodness."

"What's the game plan, Harry?" Lucas watched his boss closely.

Harry thought for a moment before he answered, "Game plan?" He turned to his senior officer, "I feel as if we're about to attend a football game! Game plan!"

Lucas grinned as he turned to look at Emily, "I like football…don't watch it much but it's a fun sport."

"Oh…I don't follow sports Lucas, I haven't the slightest idea about their rules." Emily looked at him in confusion

"It's okay, I'm teasing."

"Well, I'm not." Harry groused. "First of all, we're going behind -6's back….not that that's a bad idea." He shrugged. "Second, this has to be handled very carefully." Emily and Lucas nodded. "Gallows is a fool for letting Harold Brown who's nothing but a sniveling little weasel."

Emily chuckled.

Harry whipped his stern head at her, "Yes…yes, go ahead and laugh, Prentiss but do not underestimate that bloody weasel. He moved up the ranks really fast; his father wants him in the Parliament." Harry frowned at the last statement.

"And you don't want that happening." Lucas provided the last.

"Of course not!" Harry snapped. "Imagine the Parliament full of 'rodents'! Harold will be filling the seats with his cronies, for heaven's sakes!"

Emily arched her brows, "Um…back to the situation at hand…"

Harry stared at her, "Yes, I've not forgotten, Prentiss." He stood up and walked about his office before he turned back to her. "Of course you'll have to turn over the books to Gallows but," he held up one hand. "You'll tell him the interpretations are about Syrians making a trade with the Egyptians…and arms trade are all about illegal weapons."

"You think he'll buy it?"

Harry shrugged, "He'll have his people go through the books…if he has anyone to interpret them."

"But they'll see the word 'nuclear'."

Harry nodded, "I'm aware of that but by then…"

Emily smiled, "I see…that'll give Harold time to contact brother Omar."

Harry smiled at her, "You're catching on, young lady."

…

In the meantime, in the dungeons of INTERPOL, Reid and Hotch going over the last few pages of the books Reid had completed. Mei-Lin was standing outside, keeping watch as usual.

There was a small smile on Reid's face as he muttered over the pages.

Hotch arched his brow as he watched his young agent, "Something amusing?"

Reid glanced over to him and shook his head, "Oh no, Hotch, I'm just going over this page…it's actually boring…"

"And you're smiling?"

Reid frowned, "I am?"

Hotch nodded, "Come on, Reid…you're talking to me." He looked at him expectantly.

Reid looked out the closed door where he knew Mei-Lin was standing and turned back to Hotch, "She came to my room last night…and we talked."

Surprise wore on Hotch's face; so Emily was right, she did hear some noise!

"Is she okay?"

Reid nodded, "Oh…yeah…yes…she told me all about her fiancé," Hotch nodded and waited. "And I told her about Maeve." Reid finished quietly.

"How did it feel…talking about her?" Hotch prompted.

The young man shrugged, "It's okay…didn't hurt as much as I thought. I guess I'm ready to move on." He looked up at Hotch. "I won't forget about her, Hotch."

"Reid, just because you may have feelings for someone else doesn't mean you're betraying Maeve's memory. It's okay, I'm sure she wants you to move on."

"Did…Did…you feel…"

Hotch smiled softly, "Yeah, I did feel weird when I first went out with Beth. But now, it's gotten easier, I don't feel as if I betrayed her, I'm moving on, I have to…and so do you, Reid."

Reid nodded, "Yeah, I guess I owe it to her." He took a deep breath, "I like Mei-Lin, she's nice." He said shyly.

Hotch chuckled, "Yes Reid, she's a nice girl. I like her too."

Reid blushed slightly.

"And very smart."

Reid smiled, "I know she told me…she and I have the same IQ."

Hotch arched his brow, "You're kiddin'?"

The young agent shook his head, "Seriously, Hotch."

"Okay…"

They were interrupted by a knock; it was Mei-Lin, "Excuse me, agents, it's Emily."

They exchanged looks; Hotch grinned widely, "Thanks, Mei-Lin. We're packed and ready."

Emily appeared by the door, "Hey guys, all done?" She looked at Hotch.

He nodded, "Reid's done…and he did a few touch-ups, like you wanted."

Emily nodded, "Great, thanks Reid."

He nodded, "No problem, Emily. Like I said, I'm glad to help…and I had fun." He looked behind her over to where Mei-Lin was standing and smiling at him in return.

Emily saw his exchange and glanced over to Hotch who shook his head and smile.

"Okay, hand over the notes. MI-6 just called…again." Emily rolled her eyes. "They are anxious to get their hands on the notebooks." She stood aside and indicted to the three men who were waiting to pick up the boxes.

….

Twenty minutes later, at Vauxhall Emily was standing in front of Sir Fillion Gallows; she noticed Harold Brown was not present in the room.

"Here are the notebooks, Sir Gallows, all 200 of it."

Nodding at them, the man gave it a cursory glance, "Thank you agent Prentiss. We'll have our expert examine them shortly." He began to walk to the doors, an indication of dismissing her.

"Good day to you…I have a meeting in five minutes with the Prime Minister…"

"Oh…I guess I'll leave." Emily smiled as she nodded to the men. "Let's go, guys." They nodded and left.

As they left the building, Emily muttered to Tomas, "As paranoid as they have been, I'm surprise he didn't use a scanner on the boxes."

Tomas shook his head, "A little careless, Agent Prentiss, yes indeed. Although I wonder where that Harold Brown is…?"

Emily glanced about her, "Yeah…that little weasel is MIA…"

Tomas chuckled, "Best get out of here…this place always gives me the creeps." He shivered for effect. "It's as if there are eyes everywhere."

Canter nodded, "I know what you mean," he looked about him as they walked out of the place. "The faster we get out of the building, the faster we shake the eyeballs off the back of our heads." He began to brush his head.

Emily shook her head, "You guys are a bunch of pansies." She chuckled.

"Pansies! Hey, don't laugh…MI-6 are the creeps…never liked them…now MI-5, they're not half as bad."

Canter nodded.

"Now, I agree with you on that." Emily grinned. "That's one agency that doesn't play around."

She took out her phone, "Prentiss, okay Lucas…Operation Mouse Trap is all yours." She grinned.

_Operation Mouse Trap?_ Lucas repeated. Who thought of that name?

"I did!" Emily laughed, her team shook their heads.

_Figures…Yank!_ Lucas chuckled. _Very well, Mouse Trap is set up and is a go._

"By the way…the weasel was MIA at Vauxhall." Emily informed him.

_Oh? I'll inform Harry…this is interesting information; he never lets Gallows out of his sight. Thank you Emily. _

"Not a problem, happy tracking. Prentiss out." She tucked her phone back into her pocket as she hopped in the car and joined the other three.

Hotch grinned at Emily, "Where to, boss?"

"Back to the –Pol. We still have to figure out the third location." She turned around to face the back seats where Reid and Mei-Lin were seated, "Harold Brown was not there, and I have a bad feeling about this."

Hotch frowned at her, "I hate it when you have bad feelings…things never end up well."

She turned back to him, "I don't either, Hotch but you know me long enough."

Hotch nodded, "I do and I'm beginning to worry. This third location…"

Emily nodded, "Yeah, I know what you mean."

Reid leaned forward, "What? What do you mean?"

Hotch and Emily exchanged looks before he explained, "I'm afraid it's going to lead us to a trap but we have to go forward, Reid."

"Why?" This came from Mei-Lin.

Emily took a deep breath, "The third location may lead us to where your father is."

….

End of Chapter 12


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Sorry for the delay posting…had to battle a Migraine yesterday. But I'm better now.

Thank you everyone for your wonderful and brilliant reviews! I love every one of them!

….

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 13

.

"We've found the location!" Hotch looked up at Emily from the notes.

Emily rushed over to him from her desk. "Where?"

"Right here."

She frowned, "What do you mean?"

"I mean right here…as in London." Hotch folded his arms across his chest; emphasizing his biceps. Emily arched her brows in appreciation.

"Oh…uh…that's…nice." Her eyes never strayed from his arms.

"Em…" He grinned, "Are you okay?"

She blinked a few times, "Yes…yes." She took a deep breath and pushed at him, "You're really a distraction, do you know that?"

He leaned into her closely, "Am I?" and stole a kiss from her.

She giggled, "Yes." She cleared her throat. "Come on, let's concentrate."

"I am, and I just told you…it's right here in London."

She gave him a glare, "Hotch, London is really, really big. If Omar bin Laden is here, we need to be much more precise."

He stroke her smooth chin, "I know…precise…" and kissed it. "You have such smooth skin, sweetie." He said softly.

Emily closed her eyes, "Yeah?" Breathing in his soft scent and gentle touch.

He nodded, "Yes. And I like it a lot."

"Uh…Hotch?" They were interrupted by Reid who was standing by the door of her office.

Hotch nodded before they separated, "Yeah, Reid?"

The young agent watched them for a moment before he looked to Hotch, "I…uh…it's…" he held out a piece of paper. "This page…, it's the actual location. Vauxhall…"

Emily's eyes widened, "Oh my god! MI-6!" She ran out of the office and began to shout for her team, "Canter, Williams! Where is Tomas? Get in my office!" She returned to the office and took out her cell phone and began to call MI-5.

"Harry Pearce…it's Emily Prentiss." Quickly he told him what they discovered. "Yes…we believe Sir Gallows' in danger…" She turned around to stare at Hotch who in turn nodded at her. "We have to find Harold Brown…he's the key…Omar bin Laden is definitely here." She shook her head, "No sir. We don't know his exact location…for all we know he's at Vauxhall as well…or he's holding Sir Gallows hostage, I don't know but he's very dangerous."

She nodded and ended the call and looked about her, "Where's Mei-Lin?"

Reid frowned, "I thought she's here with you?"

Emily shook her head, "No…she walked out with you."

"She told me she had to get a drink…she'd be right back…" They turned their heads out the door.

"Oh…! Reid…." Emily exclaimed as she walked out to her secretary's office, "Mr. Weaver, have you seen Dr. Wong?"

He nodded, "Yes and no…she said she received a phone call and had to step out…something about saving her father…" He frowned. "Wait a minute…wasn't he kidnapped a few years ago and he was still missing?"

Emily nodded, "Yes, Mr. Weaver, Mei-Lin's father is still missing. Did she indicate where she was headed?"

Her secretary shook his head at first but hesitated, "I…wait…she did say…to the Gallows or something…I thought she was touched in the head…you know about these scientists…" He shrugged.

"Sir Gallows!" Emily exclaimed. "MI-6, she's headed to Vauxhall!" She turned to Hotch, Reid and her team, "Come on guys…let's head out there! I think Omar got in touch with her…."

…..

With lunch hour traffic, it took them munch longer to arrive at MI-6.

When they finally did, MI-5 was there.

Lucas North greeted her, "Hello again." He nodded at her and then at them.

Emily quickly introduced him to the BAU pair. "What's going on in there?"

Lucas shook his head, "Nothing so far. Sir Gallows is nowhere to be found, his secretary is giving us some story he is out of town."

Emily shook he head, "As if we're going to buy that." She turned to Reid, "Try her cell again, Reid."

The young man nodded.

"No…she's not answering." Reid shook his head. "Emily…I should have…"

"Not now Reid…don't blame yourself! This is not anyone's fault! We didn't see this coming!"

Emily's cell phone rang; it was Clyde Easter.

"Clyde," She greeted. "You have very bad timing!"

_You tell me…I just landed in Heathrow. Bloody tired…and…_

Emily sighed as she cut in and told him all that had happened.

_What the bloody hell is going on, Emily? Harry just called me, Fillion is missing, let me tell you that if word got to the PM that the head of MI-6 is involved in something clandestine, there's going to be a lot of investigations…starting with the Parliament…and INTERPOL will be heading this investigation, mind you._

"Clyde, one thing at a time…Mei-Lin is missing, we think she received a call and is at Vauxhall…Omar bin Laden is here too. And they want SEIS."

There was a momentary silence before he spoke again, _I take it you have a plan?_

She grinned at her phone, "As a matter of fact, -5 is here to help us with the plan… flush out a weasel and a rat."

She could her him chuckled, _You and your euphemisms…Okay, just be safe, get Mei-Lin safely, she's important and SEIS, in the wrong hands, I don't have to remind you.…I'll be there as soon as I clear customs._

"I'll see you then, my friend." But once again, she was talking to a dead receiver.

Hotch came to stand before her, "Well?"

She arched her brow, "That's Clyde, he sends his love."

Hotch shook his head, "As if. He's here, isn't he?"

Frowning at his astute intuition, "How…? Never mind." She shook her head, "He's at the airport but it'll be awhile before he gets here. He says to go ahead…Mei-Lin is our priority, let me tell -5."

He nodded as he watched her.

Reid came to stand beside him, "Hotch…what's going to happen to Mei-Lin? I mean, what if bin Laden's gotten ahold of her? Her late fiancé…" He let the implication fall.

Hotch turned to him, "Reid, we won't let it come to that. We'll get her in time."

"What if we don't? She has SEIS and if they have their hands on it…they will not have any use of her." He said worriedly.

Hotch reached out and placed his hands on Reid's shoulder, "We are going to get her back…you are going to get her back." He said firmly.

Reid nodded as he slipped his hands into both pants pockets and frowned and pulled his right hand out…and the jade pendant, "Oh shit!"

Hotch arched his brow, "What the hell?"

"She and I…When she kissed me before she left…I thought I felt something..." He frowned.

Hotch grinned slightly, "You kissed her?" He teased him.

Blushing slightly, Reid nodded, "Yeah…well, she and I came to, an…an understanding…and we, we uh, we…" he looked up at Hotch's eyes and saw his teasing looks and smiled, "Nice one Hotch, ha ha."

Smacking the young agent's shoulder, "No, good job Reid…never thought you had it, just don't tell Morgan about it."

Eyebrows raised, "Oh! Yeah…he's not going to…hey…hey…don't you tell him about us!"

Hotch chuckled, "I'm not."

Feeling slightly relieved, he nodded.

Emily came back and spotted the pendant in his hand, "Hey! Reid…the pendant! What…?"

Reid quickly explained to her.

Emily nodded, "Well, at least she's smart to do that. Wait…she knew she was going to be lured away…" She looked at Hotch. "Something is not right…"

"I hate it when she bites her bottom lip." Hotch groaned.

"Why?" Reid watched her. "What does it mean?"

"It means she knows something fishy is up and I'm not going to like it." He shook his head.

"What?"

Emily snapped her finger, "Hotch! We have to get inside! Come on…stay Reid, we have to find Sir Gallows." She began to rush towards the building."

"Wait!" Hotch held her hand, "Talk to me first, Em."

"Just trust me!" She indicated the building. "Gallows is still here."

"Emily! Emily!" Lucas rushed in. "We found Sir Gallows…up at the roof top. He's been stabbed to death."

"Oh shit."

…

End of Chapter 13


	14. Chapter 14

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 14

.

On the roof top of Vauxhall, Emily and the BAU pair as well as MI-5 team stood before the dead body of the late Sir Fillion Gallows.

"His death could not have been long…I saw him this morning, when I delivered the boxes." Emily said.

"How was his demeanor?" Hotch asked her.

She shrugged, "About the same, stiff and uptight…nothing unusual."

"Omar must not have gotten to him until after you have left."

"Where are the boxes?" Lucas asked.

Emily glanced at Reid who took his phone out, "Garcia…GPS on the boxes."

_Well, hello London Reid, very chic and Union Jack of you, and we miss you. _Garcia blasted at once on him.

"No time Garcia," Reid shook his head. "We have a serious situation."

_Everything is a serious situation, my love…how's Emily and the boss? What is going on? I think there's something's going on…and I'm not talking about why you and Hotch snuck out on us. It's about Beth Clemmons and the boss, although you're not aware of the whole mess…_

"Garcia," Reid cut her. "Stop, stop…we need you to trace the GPS numbers Emily sent yesterday."

_Oh…of course, let me see…it's hmm….well, would you believe it, you are right on top of it. Why? What's going on?_

Reid turned to Emily, "It's still here."

_Hello? Reid? Something you're not telling me? Where's Emily? Hotch? Anyone?_

"Thanks, Garcia…" Reid hung up on her before she got another word out. "What now?"

Emily turned to Lucas, "It's still here, Lucas."

He nodded, "I'll get the transponder tracer and we'll get down to it…see you in a bit." He nodded to his team and they headed towards the stairs.

"Be careful, Lucas!" Emily waved at him as she smiled.

He turned to her, "Always, you still owe me a dinner, love." And left

Hotch frowned at him and then at her, "Something I should know?"

Emily grinned, "Long story, Hotch."

"Well, I have time."

She chuckled, "Not at the moment. And no, it's not what you think."

He narrowed his eyes and then sighed, "I'm not sure if I should let you out of my sight now."

"Hotch, trust me, will you?"

He nodded, "You know I do." He glanced towards the stairs, "Although I'm not sure about this Lucas North fellow."

She moved close to him, "You're not …jealous, are you?" Her eyes were wide.

"What if I am?"

She was stunned and then she looked at him closely before she saw his expression and realized he was teasing her. "Oh my god! You're such a tease!" She smacked him lightly on his arm.

He smiled at her and lightly held her waist, "Just remember what I said last night."

Her breath hitched, "Oh! Yes…how could I forget?"

Hotch gave her a smile and was about to answer when he saw Reid turned the body of Sir Gallows over slightly. "What is it, Reid?"

Straightening, the young doctor showed him a piece of paper. They gathered to read it; _SEIS or WONG dies like GALLOWS, you have two hours. _

Reid shook his hands holding the paper, "Emily…we have to find her…two hours…that's not enough time." He began to walk away mumbling, "Just like Maeve…just like Maeve…It's not fair."

Emily looked at Hotch, "We have to get him back in the game, Hotch."

He nodded as he began to follow him while Emily got on her earphone and began to relay the dateline to MI-5 and her team.

…..

Emily, Hotch, and Reid were sweeping the second floor of the building while her team was on the next floor above them. MI-5 was working below. They had an hour to go; so far no sign of Omar bin Laden, Harold Brown or Mei-Lin.

"Emily?" This was from Reid as he closed another door after he made a check.

"Yeah Reid?" She answered.

"Er…what does Omar bin Laden looks like?"

Emily paused as she contemplated his question, "Er…that is a good question." She turned to stare at him slowly.

Hotch came to her, "How did we miss that?" He almost smacked his own forehead for that oversight.

Cell phone in hand, she quickly dialed for INTERPOL in France and began to request for photos.

When she turned back to Hotch she shook her head, "No luck…as far as INTERPOL is concern, no one knows what he looks like, we're SOL."

"So, how are we to ID him?" Reid stood before her.

She shrugged, "Probably, he'll be the one holding Mei-Lin hostage."

Reid nodded despondently, "Yeah…with a gun to her head."

The two senior agents exchange concern looks, "Reid," Emily shook her head, "We'll find her and get her back. And whatever happens, do not give the pendant to bin Laden."

He nodded miserably, "I hope we won't come to that."

"Me too, Reid. Me too."

Soon, they received a call from their team; they had found the elevator in the basement shaft.

_Boss,_ Tomas keyed in, _the lift is not in use which is unusual. They are for_ _the workers._

Emily nodded, _we'll be right down, Tomas. _She then hurried down the stairs with Hotch and Reid in tow. "That's where they must have hold them down there."

When they arrived at the basement, they saw that they were not alone at all, MI-5 was there now but they allowed the INTERPOL and the BAU the lead as they stood behind them.

"All yours, Emily." Lucas nodded at her.

She returned his nod, "Thanks Lucas…what do you see?"

He shook his head, "Not much…" He held out a black box, "Three heat signatures."

Emily nodded, "Okay, we'll proceed as usual."

"Be careful then."

Emily turned to Hotch and Reid, "Okay, we're a go…tread carefully."

They nodded and opened the door.

The first thing Emily saw was Harold Brown, he was standing by a long hallway and he was acting nervous.

"Do you have SEIS? Please tell me you have it…or he'll shoot me too."

Emily shook her head, "No…where is Mei-Lin?"

Brown shook his head, "He has her…give me SEIS…please. I must have it." His hands shook.

"Harold, I don't have it. Why are you doing this? Why are you working with Al Qaeda?"

Brown shook his head, "I'm not…well I didn't mean to. I just want…need the money. And they're willing to pay me."

Hotch and Reid were standing on either side of Emily by now.

"How much?" She asked.

"$200 million."

"You're willing to sell your country and others for that?" Emily hissed at him.

Brown shrugged. "I needed the money."

"And so you shall have it."

Emily, Hotch and Reid turned to the another set of doors and saw a man and Mei-Lin!

"Mei-Lin!" Reid exclaimed.

She turned to him, "Spencer! Don't…you should leave!"

Frowning at her, "What do you mean?"

Emily frowned as well but not at her, "Wait…Mei-Lin! That's…"

The young Asian woman nodded, tears in her eyes as she looked at Emily, "I didn't know! I thought he's dead! You told me he died!"

Emily shook her head, "INTERPOL confirmed his death, Mei-Lin…Oh my god."

Mei-Lin nodded, "I didn't know, Emily…and father didn't either." Her tears streamed down continuously. "We've been betrayed.

Hotch was confused, "What's going on?"

"Dr. Tony Mandell is Omar bin Laden." Emily revealed.

…..

End of Chapter 14


	15. Chapter 15

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 15

.

Omar bin Laden/Dr. Tony Mandell stared wildly at Emily as he held onto Mei-Lin tightly, "Yes INTERPOL! I am his brother…well, half brother. Our mothers are not the same but it doesn't matter, they're all whores who gladly gave themselves to our father." He smiled. "I was brought up in the same home as Osama and we loved each other. He taught me much. Until father decided to he wanted to seek other 'comforts'. We were not enough for him…so many brothers and sisters…so many mouths to feed. His legacy, he claimed." He waved his gun about as he lashed his anger out. "But my dear brother and I, we saw what we had to do to provide for the good of our family…and the country. Our beliefs in Allah is parallel. Osama is a brilliant leader, he saw the future but our father became soft as he got old. We had to get rid of him.

"We began to build a big army…none of which we can even begin to imagine…They believe our future, their children believe in our future. We will conquer and we will overcome the infidels." He turned to stare at Hotch and Reid, "You Americans will pay ten folds for what you did to my brother! Your country does not know the consequences yet." He turned to Emily, "You INTERPOL, hand me my SEIS, my nuclear program."

"If I do that, will you release her?" Emily pointed to Mei-Lin.

Omar shook his head, "Of course not, she is to be my first wife. We are to be married after all." He tightened his hold for emphasis.

Mei-Lin whimpered.

"Don't worry, my pet." Omar soothed her. "As my first wife, you shall have everything you desire…jewelry, money, dresses…as long as you give me children…sons, many sons."

"What about my money? You promise me my money, Omar!" Harold glared at him.

Omar turned to Harold and sneered, "But Harold, you have not delivered the nuclear program as you have promised me."

Harold shook his head, "I have…it's here…she has it!" He pointed at Mei-Lin. "She has the program in her!"

Omar shook his head, "You are wrong, Mei does not have it, I know." He raised the gun and shot Harold in his head. "You have failed me, Harold…this is your price for failure."

Mei-Lin began to scream and struggle against him, "I'm not going to give you anything…you disgusting jerk! Let go of me!" She continued to struggle.

He laughed at her as he held on tight, "You are my chosen wife, Mei-Lin. I love you."

"…No…she's not!" Reid spoke out. They turned to him. "She's…uh, she's no longer yours."

"Reid…" Emily glared at him. "What are you doing?"

"Trust me, Emily." He turned back to Omar. "She said she no longer loves you. You have betrayed her father and what she held most dear to her heart is now lost to her, you are lost to her. Do you still want a woman who no longer holds you in that regard?"

Omar looked down at her, "Is this true, Mei?"

She stared at Reid who silently nodded at her, she then nodded, "Yes, yes, you took my father, Tony. You told me once that your parent is the most dearest and highly regarded person in your life and someone killed him and that you swore revenge on him. It's your older brother who killed him!" Mei-Lin continued, "I don't understand why. You and your brother betrayed your own father. And now, you've taken my father. Please Tony, I love him. Please return my father to me."

Bin Laden watched her for a moment before he shook his head, "No Mei, the decision is made. Your father's fate has been decided, Allah will take care of him. My people have begun the hajj. They have taken him along the journey of Abraham, and he will take the pilgrimage…"

"NO!" Mei-Lin screamed as she to struggle again.

Two shots rang out and hit Omar in between his eyes and he fell back, taking Mei-Lin with him as he lay dead on the floor.

Reid turned beside him and saw Hotch and Emily still holding their guns up, they had just killed Omar bin Laden. "Ni…Nice…shootings…guys." Reid uttered before he rushed forward to where Mei-Lin was struggling to free herself from Omar.

Emily shrugged as they lowered their guns, "He was quite long-winded, I was getting tire of him."

Hotch shook his head, "Em…that was not funny at all."

She looked at him and smiled, "Come on Hotch, it is."

He moved close to her and touched her arm, "All right, it was a little…after we had contained the situation." He turned to watch Reid hugged Mei-Lin close to him. "And no one has gotten seriously hurt."

Emily nodded as she made her way to Mei-Lin and Reid, "Hey, Mei-Mei you okay?"

The young lady nodded as she turned her face to Emily, "Yes, Emily…but my father…he's still missing."

"Don't worry, we'll find him."

Mei-Lin frowned, "How?"

"Did you not hear what that scumbag said? Your father is with a group of people making their way to the pilgrimage to Mecca. I'm going there."

"I want to go too." She straightened.

Emily shook her head, "Sorry kiddo, you're not allowed. Clyde's orders, remember? You have other …stuff to do. But I can assure you… I'll not come back till I find your dad."

Mei-Lin rushed to hug Emily, "Oh! Thank you, Emily! Thank you so much!"

Choked up in tears, "Hey, hey…let's not get too teary. How about we get out of this dreary place." She looked away from Mei-Lin but Hotch and Reid saw tears in Emily's eyes.

…

Outside Vauxhall, Hotch stood beside Emily, "This pilgrimage, you're sure you'll find Mei-Lin's father?"

Emily nodded, "And the fourth cell."

Hotch arched his brow, "A moving cell…that's an unusual and interesting concept."

She nodded, "It's not actually, Clyde and I found one before when we intercepted the crate. The cell was moving along with it."

Hotch almost lost it, "You mean you and Easter cleaned them… by yourselves?"

She shrugged and held him, "Hotch, we were not entirely alone, there was a team with us. Trust me, we would never place ourselves in danger."

Placated, he nodded, "How long will you be gone?"

"As long as it takes to find him but first we have to gather some intel, I've relayed the message to Clyde."

He nodded. "You'll let me know?"

"Of course…I'm not going to sneak off in the middle of the night." She gave him an odd look.

He caught it. "Emily…" He warned her.

She chuckled, "What?" She shook her head. "Okay, I might have to…we won't have any warnings. And…and …" She took a deep breath. "Look, if it makes you feel better, I'll have my team pass on a message to you." She held up a hand. "Which is against INTERPOL protocol, mind you."

"I feel privileged."

"You should be." She smiled widely.

"Okay guys," MI-5, Lucas North stood before them. "We found the boxes." Lucas waved at the black box. "Thanks to the tag." He then looked at Emily and Hotch, "Oh, did I walk into a bad and awkward moment?"

Emily shook her head, "Not at all, Lucas."

"Yes, North." Hotch glared at him.

Lucas raised his brow, "Lovers' quarrel? But I thought you were?"

"Butt out, will you, North?" Hotch asked rudely.

"Hotch!" Emily glared at him in surprise but she laughed, "Hold it, Lucas, don't mind him, he's jealous…"

"I'm not…"

"Yes, you are, Hotch."

Lucas held his hand out, "Stop you two. I'm not getting in between. But I have to ask."

Emily nodded.

"Why do you keep calling him Hotch? I thought his name is Aaron?"

Emily turned to Hotch and grinned, "Because he's Hotch." She shrugged. "I'm much more comfortable calling him that than his given name."

Lucas shook his head, "I don't understand Emily, you call me by my name but with him, you call him Hotch. Well, good luck, Hotchner." He held his hand out to Hotch. "It was a pleasure meeting you."

Hotch smiled, "The pleasure is mine, North. Take care."

Lucas turned to Emily, "As for you Emily, it's good working with you. Harry will be ad interim Head of MI-6 until Parliament votes on a new leader. I have to return to the GRID, there's much to do. Until then, we still have a dinner date." He gave them a nod before he left them.

Hotch shook his head, "Not a chance." He muttered.

"What?"

He stared at her, "You are not going on a date with him." He pointed.

"Oh, come on, Hotch…trust me, will you?"She laughed. "He's harmless."

He snorted. "Yeah, so was Jack the Ripper."

Emily began to laugh, "Fine…I'll not go out on a date with him."

"Hey, Hotch!" Reid walked towards them with Mei-Lin in tow. "Guess what?"

Emily and Hotch exchanged smiles, "What, genius?"

Reid hesitated, "Hotch…"

Hotch shook his head; he saw Reid's expression. "Oh no, Reid. You're not staying here. You're coming back home with me. JJ called and we have a case."

Reid frowned, "But you guys can do without me for a few more days."

Again, Hotch shook his head, "Back me up will you, Emily?"

Emily nodded, "Mei-Lin, you do have work at the –POL."

Mei-Lin sighed, "You're right. I do…"

"I can help her…like before." Reid jumped in.

Mei-Lin shook her head, "No Spencer. The work I'm doing, it's top secret and only for INTERPOL eyes." She gave him a forlorn look.

"I understand." Reid said with deflated tones.

Emily rolled her eyes, "Oh for heaven's sake…will you stop this Romeo and Juliet crap?" She waved at them. "Seriously? You can still talk to her via Skype, phone, internet…etc." She shook her head as she began to walk away from them and headed to her vehicle. "I'm hungry…anyone for lunch?"

Hotch joined her, "You're always hungry but luckily, so am I."

Reid and Mei-Lin nodded as well, "We are too!"

Tomas suddenly came running, "Boss! Hey boss! Wait up!"

Emily paused as she turned to face her team, "What now?"

Tomas skidded to a stop right in front of her, "I have to go…! It's my Josie! She's on her way to the hospital!"

Emily frowned, "What? But she's not due for another month."

Tomas nodded, "I know, something's not right…" His face was pale.

Emily nodded, "Go…go…I'll meet you at the hospital." She looked up at Lt. Canter, "You drive him to the hospital. NOW!"

He saluted her, "Yes boss!" They ran off to their vehicle.

Hotch watched her, "Let's go, Emily."

Emily nodded, "It's too early…the baby…it's not time yet…"

Reid and Mei-Lin immediately hopped into the back of the car.

Hotch held onto her hand, "It'll be okay, Em. Have faith."

Emily looked at Hotch before she started the ignition, "I have faith, Hotch. I only hope the baby is okay…they've come too far. Tomas and Josie…she's suffered three miscarriages already and this is the furthest she has carried this baby." With tears in her eyes, she drove towards the hospital.

On the way to the hospital, Emily received a call from Clyde Easter; INTERPOL received a message from their counter-part in the Middle-East, they had located the group traveling with Mei-Lin's father and they were headed towards Mount Ararat in Turkey.

….

End of Chapter 15


	16. Chapter 16

Acceptable Risk

Chapter 16

.

"It's a boy! It's a boy!" Tomas exclaimed as soon as he spotted Emily and the others approaching.

Beaming widely, she rushed to her team member where she was swoop by him in his jubilance and swung about wildly in the hallways of the hospital.

Emily, caught unawares, began to laugh as she tried to join in his laughter, "Okay, okay, Tomas…let me down. Let me down or I'll upchuck on you!"

Shaking his head, he slowed their motion as he let her down and said, "It'll be all right, boss! TJ's going to be doing it to be soon enough, might as well get a good practice." He laughed.

Emily frowned at him as she blinked, "TJ?"

"Tomas Junior! My son, Josie agreed to name him Tomas Junior or TJ for short." He said proudly.

Lt. Canter slapped him on his back and grinned, "I like it a lot, sounds like something from some hero movie. Your boy'll grow up to be a weapons expert like his pa, hey?"

Tomas shook his head, "Josie wants him to be a football player." Canter and he began to laugh.

Emily turned to Hotch, "I don't get it?"

Hotch shook his head, "Me neither, must be an inside joke."

Emily turned back to Tomas, "Hey, can I see Josie and TJ?"

Tomas grinned widely, "Of course boss! Come on, I show you…"

…..

Reid and Mei-Lin remained in the car, they sat in the backseat and continued to talk.

"Spencer," Mei-Lin began. "I should thank you for saving me." She tightened their grasp. "No one has ever done anything like this…"

Reid shook his head, "I lost Maeve," he said quietly. "Because I was not in time but I'm glad I'm able to save you."

She nodded, "So…what now? I mean…you live in America, and I live here…quite far apart."

Reid, "Like Emily said, we have Skype, phones, and texts…and we can fly."

She looked at him, "Fly?"

"Yeah, I can take vacations and fly over to you or vice versa. It's not that hard."

She nodded again, "Yeah, I guess so."

Reid frowned at her hesitation, "Why? What's the matter?"

She shook her head, "Nothing…it's just that, statistically the success in long-distance relationship is less than 11% and dwindles even more as more time…"

She was cut off when Reid kissed her long and hard.

A long moment later when they separated for a breath of air, they were panting hard, "Wow, I…I, like that!"

Reid was smiling as his heart beat wildly, "Yeah, me too."

Mei-Lin looked about them, "How..How long do you think it's going to take them?"

He shook his head, "With Emily, it could take a while. Why?"

She glance at him peripherally, "Well…there was a hotel nearby…" She suggested boldly."

Arching his brow, "Oh!" Thinking about in less than a second, he removed his cell phone and began to text Hotch before he opened the car door and pulled Mei-Lin along with him, "Let's go, Mei-Lin."

She chuckled as she grasped his hand and nodded, "Dutch courage?"

Reid turned to her, "Did you want some gin? Isn't it a little early for liquor?"

She shook her head as they walked away from the car, "You know the popular euphemism is from 1650 when a Dutch doctor tried to create diuretic medicine but during the 30 year war…"

Reid nodded, "The English troops used it to keep them warm in the winter and gave them extra courage…" He smiled at her.

Together, "Thus, Dutch courage!" they laughed as they walked towards the large building.

….

Hotch felt his cell phone buzzing and pulled it out of his shirt pocket and began reading the text and smiled which soon turned to laughter.

Emily turned to him, "What's going on, Hotch?"

Shaking his head, "You'll not believe it; your genius and my genius are um…off to, well…." He held out his cell phone so Emily could read Reid's text.

Soon, Emily began to laugh, "Oh my god! Oh my god! I can't believe it! Well…maybe I can but to actually see it.!" She was blushing.

Hotch gathered her to him, "Does it bother you?"

She shook her head, "Not at all, I'm glad for him. Remember your plea for help?"

Hotch arched his brow at her, "Yes, yes…I do. And yes…I guess we did it. For Reid. We did it."

Emily nodded, "Yes, we did. I hope Maeve Donovan can rest in peace…for Spencer." She said softly, as she stared ahead of her which was a newborn baby asleep in a bassinet while mother and father cuddled together in the bed across from it.

Hotch and Emily nodded at them before they left the hospital.

….

In the car, "I guess it's back home, home for me and Reid tomorrow." Hotch said quietly as he turned to Emily.

Head down, she nodded sadly, "Yeah, I guess."

He turned to her, "Emily, look at me."

She shook her head, her hair a curtain covering her profile.

Sighing, Hotch leaned over and lifted her hair aside, "There you are Emily." He tried to cheer her up. "It's not the end of everything, you know?"

She nodded, "Reid will argue about that fact, he'll say long-distance relationship will have less than 11% or something like that and…and…"

Hotch reached over and grabbed her chin gently and turned her head to face him, "Well, Reid's wrong. Besides I don't care much about stats."

"What are you talking about?"

"You and I…we've known each other for a long time. Long distance is just an excuse…and INTERPOL or the FBI we can change our destiny."

"Hotch?"  
He sighed happily, "Emily, what I'm trying to say is we can change our career easily if we want to."

Her eyes widened, "You mean you'll change if you want to…wait." She frowned and shook her head.

"What?" He frowned as well. "What's the matter?"

"No you won't. I know you, Hotch. The FBI/BAU is your life."

He smiled, "Is it?"

She leaned forward and looked closely at him, "Am I talking to the real Aaron Hotchner?"

"Yes."

"But, you just said you're willing to change…and I know you, Hotch, and you have Jack at home…"

"Do you, Emily?"

"Yes." She said firmly. "Yes and I will not want you to give up anything for me. I'm not selfish."

"Emily…"

She shook her head, "No Hotch. I can't ask you to give up everything you've worked hard for."

"So, what are we to do?"

She looked ahead. "The only thing is for me to move back."

He shook his head, "I can't let you give up your job…your career."

"It's nothing, Hotch. You know me, I've never settled down on anywhere."

"And will you settle down in Virginia?" He looked at her. "You didn't before."

"I didn't have anyone to hold me there before…" she held her breath. She stared at their hands, particularly his.

He nodded, "And now, you'll have me and Jack."

She nodded, "Yes." She smiled as she thought of his son whom she adored.

"So, are you prepared to settle down?"

She nodded without hesitation. "Yes."

"With us?"

She nodded again.

He sighed with satisfaction. "Then, will you do me one favor?"

She looked up at him in askance.

"Well, actually two things." He smiled.

She nodded apprehensively.

"Will you …."

They were interrupted by their respective cell phones.

They sighed at the same time as they answered their phones.

"Prentiss."

"Hotchner."

….

Three hours later, Hotch and Reid with their baggages hurriedly packed and ready to go, were at Heathrow Airport.

A very teary-eyed Mei-Lin clinging onto Reid's hand, reluctant to let him leave, "When…when…" she couldn't go on as she hic-cupped.

"I'm sorry, Mei-Lin, this case with the Replicator is taking precedence and our Section Chief is anxious for our return."

Mei-Lin nodded. "I'll wait for you to call."

He leaned down to kiss her softly and whispered.

Hotch and Emily looked away from them, "I'll keep in touch." Hotch said as he held her tightly.

"And I'll keep you up to-date." Emily nodded.

"Good luck on your findings. I'm glad your agency has confirmed the whereabouts of Mei-Lin's father's actual location."

"Me too. And I'll be headed there as soon as my team gets their gears ready."

"Promise me you'll be careful?"

She nodded, "I will, and you haven't answer me; what were the two things?"

"Not until you come back safely."

She shook her head, "Oh no Hotch! That's not fair! I'm not going to be able to concentrate on anything else! Please tell me? Now?"

He watched her for a moment and nodded, "Okay, first…will you please from now onwards call me by my first name? I'll love to hear you say it." He begged her with his eyes. "Forever."

She smiled softly at him, "I love you, Aaron Hotchner."

He closed his eyes briefly as he savored her words and opened them.

"I love you too, Emily."

"What's the second thing?"

"Hey, Hotch! They're calling for boarding!" Reid called out.

Emily almost lost it as she turned to the young doctor angrily, "Beat it, Reid! Hotch…Aaron's about to tell me something important!" She waved at him.

Eyes widened as Mei-Lin laughed at boss as she tugged at Reid, "Come on, I'll walk you to the line."

Reid nodded, "Oh…oh…yeah…I'll meet you in the plane…Hotch. Bye Emily!" He waved at her.

Emily returned his wave absentmindedly as she returned her attention to Hotch. "You were saying?"

He grinned, "It's been a long time since Haley…"

"Aaron Hotchner…" She warned him.

"Okay." He took a deep breath and let it out before he spoke again. "Emily Prentiss, will you marry me?"

…..

The End

….

I want to thank many people for making this story a success! Without your encouraging reviews, it would not have been possible!

First off, LailaS. Thank you for your wonderful and funny reviews! I love everyone of it!

To Sourgummycandy, I love your refreshing reviews!

To believesveo, rmpcmfan, lizzabet, Sam 'Dimples' Swarek, TuiNui, 50Shades of NoGubHC, Alari, Flooding Lakes, Curry36645, and Gerardfan! You guys are the best! Wohoo!

….


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